


The First Hero: Danny Phantom

by artemisdarkmoon



Category: Danny Phantom, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: All Danny's Friends Are Dead, Cementeries, Cults, Gen, Ghost King Danny Fenton, Ghosts get sleepy in cemeterys, Human Sacrifice, Summoned AU, Work In Progress, a bit of angst, slight Dadzawa, time skip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 08:08:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 36,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27590008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artemisdarkmoon/pseuds/artemisdarkmoon
Summary: "You guys get paid!?"Danny Fenton decides to take a nap and forgets to set his alarm clock. During his nap, quirks emerged and took the world by storm leaving the first superhero behind sleeping 6 feet underground. After 200 years, he wakes up and gets summoned by another cult. What will Danny do in this superhero infested world? Fighting  ghosts was one thing now he has to go ahead and deal with good old fashion Bureaucracy.
Comments: 218
Kudos: 1145
Collections: Clever Crossovers & Fantastic Fusions, Mixed_Fics, Stories That Are Cool





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work in progress that has been in my word document since before quarantine. I just want to get it out there for people to see. Honestly I dont know where I'm going with this and I'd probably rewrite this. All that matters is that other people get to read and I get to add something to the BNHA x DP fandom. Hope you guys enjoy it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG ! I CANT BELIEVE I FORGOT TO PUT THIS IN!!!!!

**Prologue**

It is theorized by people with a combined total of 12 PhDs that Quirks were caused by a virus spread by mice. But that’s just the generally accepted theory. Other theories included the following; aliens, nuclear radiation, and good old divine intervention *****. All these theories shared one thing in common, in which they are all incorrect.

In fact, people began manifesting strange and wondrous abilities because a 16-year-old boy got annoyed at a couple of rocks. I think we all know what these rocks were. They were very powerful and in the right hands (because the glove had not been made for left handed people) could manipulate reality and become the most powerful being on Earth.

The gauntlet was last seen in the hands of Danny Fenton, half-ghost, and unpaid superhero. Danny decided that using the Reality Gauntlet to fix things as they were before had been enough. He didn’t need it anymore and besides; it was way too dangerous to be left intact. 

“Alright”. He said. He pulled it off his right arm, tossing it into the air and fired his most powerful ectoblast.

“Danny, Wait!” He heard Sam and Tucker yelling for him to stop. But they were too late, and they hadn’t exactly been expecting Danny to destroy the gauntlet right away. Sam wanted to fix the world, get rid of all the bad stuff like wars, hunger and famine. She wanted to use the gauntlet for good whereas Tucker just wanted the latest edition of whatever PDA or Computer was on the market.

“Huh?” said Danny, confused. His friends were wincing, and kneeling at the concrete trying to salvage as much of the glowing hot metal.

“We could have done so many good things with the gauntlet, Danny.” Sam groaned. She stood up and bonked Danny on his thigh. Or would have, because ghosts are intangible.

“Yeah, man. We could have gotten that new spacecraft simulation that you like with a snap of your fingers.” Tucker pointed out.

“But— “ and Danny scratched his head. He thought he did the right thing. “It’s a really dangerous artifact though. But I should have really summoned a broom to clean up this mess.” The metal had stopped glowing; which Danny thought was a good sign. Now he had to get a broom from the kitchen by walking.

Sam smacked her forehead. “Ugh. Never mind. I suppose you’re right.” She conceded. Ending World Hunger would have to be done in the old fashion way of Eating The Rich, I guess. Tucker would have to settle with buying his new gadgets this time. But Danny was content. He had a lot of displaced aggression stored up and what better way to release it than towards the very thing that caused it (well technically, everything was Freakshow’s fault but he was already in jail and Danny wanted to blast something).

“That stupid thing ruined our Spring break guys. I don’t see why you didn’t want to destroy it.” His friends groaned again. “I’m going to get a broom. Help me clean up.”

You see, Danny looked at powerful artifacts the same way a monkey would look at pearls. They were shiny really, but in the end were not particularly tasty when you lick it. The last powerful artifact he held in his hands was the Crown-of-Fire, formerly owned by the Ghost King. He doesn’t really remember where he put it. He was way too busy stuffing Pariah Dark back in his sarcophagus like the mother of a 4-year-old child who was refusing to take a nap.

“Don’t you think there are consequences for destroying such a powerful artifact?” Sam asked Danny as he was sweeping the pavement.

Danny shrugged, smiling when the last bit of metal was into the dustpan. “I mean, can’t’ be too bad. They’re just rocks.”

“Really powerful rocks.” Sam pointed out.

“Eh. I’m sure it’s nothing.” He said, shrugging. Danny believed that things usually worked out for the best. The best for him that is.

One thing you must know about ghostly artifacts, especially the Reality Gauntlet, was that there are consequences when one decides to get rid of it. Danny should have really destroyed it in the Ghost zone rather than two meters away from his house. It would prevent the ghostly energy from affecting people.

And a second later, a glowing baby was born.

* _Well, maybe not entirely the divine intervention bit. Danny had been worshiped as a god in the past when he was out making sure Vlad wasn’t trying to become one_


	2. R.I.P. To Me I'm Different

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny is Tired ™ so he decides to go to sleep in his grave. He soon learns the hard way why ghosts never bother setting float in cemeteries. Danny really should have brought an alarm clock.

Ghosts in general didn't really need to sleep, and therefore don't see why Danny should, given the fact that they liked to torment him in his supposedly sleeping hours. But Danny liked sleep. Some ghost in fact, usually the friendly ones, the ones who just want to be left alone in their afterlife—sleep was what they would do 6 feet under a tombstone.

Sleep was not for the restless ghosts that haunted Amity Park.

Not for Skulker, the ghost zones self-proclaimed best hunter. "A hunter never sleeps." He once told Danny after waking him up at 3 in the morning and blasting him to kingdom come.

Sleep was not for the noisy Ember who would blast her music on loud speakers that destroyed his windows.

Sleep was not for the Box Ghost whose corrugated cardboards and whimsy uppercase letter threats never missed a delivery in reminding Danny.

Sleep was never for Clockwork for Time never sleeps.

But Sleep was for tired ol'Danny who just wanted a break. It's probably why Skulker, nor Ember and not even Boxy, would never set off (or should I say float) near Amity Happy Memorial.

* * *

It was an hour till sunrise. A lone figure in star pajamas had set foot on the grassy plains of Amity Happy Memorial. He stared at his gravestone. Something the locals had lovingly put up for him as a thank you for saving the town. It was a gravestone like all the others. To his left and to his right. But not up ahead the small hill where a mausoleum rests. There might had been a pale old woman hobbling passing through the mausoleum. If Danny had seen her, he would have realized she was a ghost. She was only mist and shadow, nothing like the bright colorful people in the Ghost Zone. The old woman glanced at the young man kneeling down on his grave. She smiled for a second before closing her eyes and letting Nothing take her.

Amity Happy Memorial was a desolate place during the witching hour. Not that it made any difference during the day though. It was located near a small body of water, and was even older than the town. Willow and Ash trees were abundant in the area. It was about as stereotypical as a horror movie could be. A local could easily identify a 100-year-old grave because it always had a gargoyle or stone raven that followed you if you glanced at it—which it really did (Legend says that if you touched it, it would follow you home and steal your left sock or Tupperware lids). As the most haunted city in the United States, nobody dared to touch any of the gargoyles. Amity locals trusted those legends.

Danny touched his gravestone (or Cenotaph as Sam has repeatedly told him). On it were the words engraved, PHANTOM MAY IN THIS GRAVE YOU FIND PEACE. Beneath it were some flowers and thank you notes that he never bothered to read.

Just a nap. A quick nap. Is what he told himself, desperate for a moment of peace. He had been so tired; assignments were piling up, his Cs were becoming F’s, Sam was pestering him to be a bigger part in people’s lives by going after rich capitalists that weren’t named Vlad Masters, Valerie kept shooting first and asking questions later. There was no end to it.

This was the first time Danny ever set foot in the graveyard, thinking why ghosts never really bothered to go here when it was so peaceful and quiet. The air was just the right temperature. A soft breeze spiraled across his body. There was a casket six feet under. He could feel it, hear it whispering to him to “Come on, come take a nap. I’m very soft and soundproof.”

Unbeknownst to all the citizens of Amitypark. Their very own ghostly hero had decided to sleep.

And 200 years later—he woke up regretting every single part of it.

* * *

Two hundred years was a long time. That much was obvious. Although he did not know two hundred years had passed when he woke up from his nap.

Danny all for all thought that it was a nap. His electric watch had big bright letters telling him that it was 10 am in the morning. First thing he thought that he was late for school and that he was going to get trouble for being late. Again. 

He didn't know that Mr. Lancer had passed away at the ripe old age of 60, unmarried and without kids.

Okay, time to go change I guess. He thought because going to school in blue pajamas was against the dress code. Which was a shame because his pajamas were more comfortable than his jeans. And they had stars in them.

Danny looked around his surroundings. There was a black man with black shiny wings bringing flowers to the grave two graves to his right.

He blinked. "Did I sleep through Halloween?" because 200 years ago people didn't have wings unless you were a ghost. And Danny was sure that this person was alive. He shrugged and decided that hunger just have caught up to his brain.

Danny ran until he reached the tall metal gates of Amity Happy Memorial. There was a large cedar tree rising majestically, as cedars did, unlike the slutty oak, right there to his right. _Now that wasn't there before_. Is what Danny should have thought but all he saw was a big tree that he can hide to transform in.

He stretched his arms feeling the familiar sensation of being dead. Danny was no longer breathing and he flew invisibly towards his home.

* * *

A thousand miles to the east, the Order of the Deadwood was having their bimonthly meeting. The Order's founder was named Bjjklyhaind Thfhsdason. But people just called him Morningwood because he was always chopping wood in the morning, disturbing his neighbors. It was probably the only things that was ever worth mentioning about him. At least, the only thing good worth mentioning.

So Mr. Wood was chopping wood in the morning like he always did for the past 10 years since his wife left him for a man who liked to bathe. When the sky turned dark green and a god had emerged from the depths of the ground claiming that he was their ruler.

Back in the old days, when a floating one eyed man with a flaming crown came and claimed they submit to him, the sensible thing would be to kneel and pledge alliance to prevent dying from the gods wrath. Mr. Wood was that man and he just happened to be the lucky person to become Pariah Darks chosen pawn to put the humans in place.

Suffice to say, it did wonders for his self-esteem when Mr. Dark gave him a sword made from the bones of the man who stole his wife.

Mr. Wood had been lucky that his backyard was where the great and powerful dark king decided to rise and claim earth. Very lucky indeed. He had been doing all sorts of things. Forcibly taking his wife back and making her watch as he drank from the skull of his dead lover, pillaging, preaching the name of Pariah Dark and having other people chop wood for him. The simple things really.

Pariahs Reign in the mortal world did not last long. And when he was forced into the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, Mr. Wood knew that he was fucked.

Bjjklyhaind Thfhsdasdson was eventually decapitated by a noble hero whose name had more consonants than he did. But he left legacies with him that waited and plotted on how to bring the King back.

That leaves us to the present. The Order of the Deadwood wore billowy green robes and horned helmets. The branch in Japan was fairly new, about 200 years old, not unlike the branches all over Europe. Mr. Tanaka was an accountant whose wife had been stolen by a woman with a leathery long tongue as a quirk. It turns out a lot of Order of the Deadwood members were mostly men who put no effort in pleasing their wives. Surprise, surprise. 

Mr. Tanaka thought that his beer belly and the fact that he refused to do laundry when asked was a manly trait. And so when his wife divorced him and took the kids, he was lured in by the Order with promises of getting his wife back. Also mind control and the usual brainwashing quirk was sometimes handy.

Frankly, Tanaka just wanted a way to be with likeminded people and complain to them how terrible his wife was.

Today though, their new leader, a Mr. Germaine, was man with a particularly creepy quirk. He could raise the dead and make them do his bidding. He came from a small town called Amitypark in Illinois, USA where he was ran off by the locals for trying to summon the King of Ghosts. Again.

Today, he was especially cheery. A lot of cult members are like that. You had to be to endure the nonsense rituals and rantings. Tanaka had never seen someone look so satisfied while carrying a book that look liked it weighed a hundred pounds. All he knew that the book was special.

"We shall start a summoning!" He boomed. Mr. Germaine did not speak a lick of Japanese, and often his voice had a nasally tone to them, which made it difficult to treat him seriously until he’d summon a zombie.

"I've waited so long for this. For vindication. Oh, the higher ups told me that it wasn’t possible but I’ll show them—Once we finally summon the King this world will be OURS!"

He started cackling. Everyone cheered. Tanaka clapped along with the others. He really didn't believe in the ghost story about a powerful ghost king that brought the earth 14 years of darkness and chaos. Amaterasu did that too for a while but he wasn't particularly keen in summoning her to bring back this cheating wife.

Well whatever it was, as long as it didn’t involve human sacrifices.

Fun fact: It did involve human sacrifices.

* * *

Danny could fly at 240 mph. Possibly even more since ghost don't really need to follow the laws of physics. He did once chase a possessed space shuttle back at their impromptu gem hunt across America a week ago.

He arrived at his house. Or at least he thought he did. "What happened to Ops Center?" (later he found out that it was destroyed 100 years ago in a fight)

Not much had changed in Amitypark after Danny's 200-year-old nap. Casper high still stood, albeit bigger. It now had tall buildings to accommodate young aspiring heroes. FentonWorks looked deserted like no one had lived there for years which was accurate by all means. Danny would soon find out as he phased into his bedroom.

It _was_ his bedroom. But there we no bed. His model spaceships which he spent 3 hours on was not on his desk because there was no desk; his telescope was gone, the computer was gone, even the stickers that glowed in the dark were gone.

His room was empty. Only the cold metal walls had adorned it. Danny's heart thumped. He ran downstairs screaming, "Mom! Dad! Jazz! "

The living room was empty as well. Plants were growing from the concrete. The walls had graffiti sprayed on them. Some with words that Danny would never say out loud because Sam forced him to drink a lot of Respect-Women-Juice.

"Come one this better not be a joke!" he yelled.

Danny's breath hitched. He phased down until he reached the basement where the portal once stood. It was dark inside the basement. Danny conjured a glowing ball of energy. Like everything else, the place was deserted. The portal empty.

"No." Danny whispered, shaking his head. "Where is everyone? how long did i fell asleep?"

He flew outside rushing to get a newspaper or someone really to tell him what year it was. The first one he found was a little girl playing with her red ball. Her dark red hair was up in pigtails and she had hooves for feet.

Danny flew down trying his best not to scare the girl.

"Um, excuse me. Do you know what year it is?"

The girl looked at him like there was monkey dancing on top of his head.

"You know you're not supposed to be using your quirk like that in public. “she said to him haughtily.

Danny didn't know what a quirk is.

"My what—ugh never mind. What year is it?"

"Did your mommy not tell you about the calendar?"

Danny pointed a glowing gloved finger at the girl, "Don't sass me hoovey. I just want to know what year is it?"

"It's 2207."she said, rolling her eyes at him. "Aren't you supposed to be at school?"

"Well what about you?" Danny said in the same bratty tone.

"I'm four." she said.

Danny started doing the math with his fingers. He had been asleep for 200 years.

"I memorized the multiplication table." The girl announced like she was mocking him for doing basic arithmetic.

Danny suddenly forgot to fly. He landed on the asphalt without a sound. "It wasn't just a nap." He muttered. He placed his palms on his face and mourned. Mom and Dad... Everyone they must be dead now. He thought sadly.

"Oh god I never even got to tell them." Danny held back a sob.

"You're weird, mister,” said the little girl.

"Yeah—well I'm not the one with hooves for feet!"

It was rude. Danny admitted. But he was too sad to care.

The girl started crying. "My mommy said that people like you are the problem." and that was the last time he saw her. Someone had patted him on the shoulder. He had been kneeling on the ground in despair for a while now.

"Hey, kid. You okay?" The voice was gruff. Danny look up after wiping away his tears.

The man who touched him looked like a pervert in Danny's opinion because he was not pulling off that skin tight blue and green jumpsuit with a billowy cape.

"Everyone I love is dead!"

Is what he would have wanted to say. But the man's outfit was so horrendous that Danny wanted to get away from his as soon as possible. He made a disgusted face at the masked man and turned invisible.

"Hey! Where are you? You can't just use your quirk like that!" The man yelled at him.

Danny didn't know what a quirk. The first thing on his mind right now was to fix the portal and get to Clockwork.

* * *

Mr. Tanaka had enough. All the members of his cult were convinced that they could summon the ghost king and have all their wishes granted. He liked having his wished granted. Dismembering other peoples body parts...not so much.

_I could go to jail for this. I'm just an accountant._ He would chant always in his brain. Tanaka was now feeling very guilty when he admitted that he had a quirkless co-worker. Mr. Germaine had convinced him to bring Yamato in as the final sacrifice. He couldn't refuse not with the threatening zombie baring its mouth at him as it served him tea and cookies.

"Of course sir." He said, breathing through his mouth to avoid inhaling the pungent rotten smell of the zombie on his right. "For the King!"

"For the king!" their leader repeated triumphantly.

He lured in Yamato very easily. The man was desperate for friends. It was easy for one of their members to knock him out with a sleeping quirk. "For the King!" said the knocker.

"For the King." said Tanaka nervously.

He had to tell someone before it was too late.

* * *

It was a calm and crisp evening when the pro-hero Eraserhead patrolled the alleys of Musutafu, Japan. A lot of quirkless people were getting kidnapped this week therefore a lot of Hero Agencies, and the police, were on high alert for suspicious people. Although not that he knew, the Order of the Deadwood had just finished kidnapping their last victim after four p.m.

Aizawa felt his phone vibrate in his pocket as he leapt ahead, landing onto the next low-rise building in the bad part of town. Now, Shota was the type of man who at first glance had only a futon in his apartment and nothing else. That is incorrect. He had in fact, a yellow sleeping bag on the corner of the 25m2 apartment. He had contemplated in getting a couch but decided not to, knowing if he would, his co-workers would think that he was inviting them over.

His phone, unlike his home, was state of the art. It had been provided by his agency and was standard for a teacher of U.A. Can’t have any hackers going about and reading his text messages now.

The words on the screen read TSUKAUCHI. One of Shota’s detective friends. He clicked on the phone icon and pressed the phone onto his ear.

“Hello.” He greeted gruffly.

_“We have a lead.”_ The voice on the other said firmly.

“The kidnappings.” Shota concluded.

_“We’re setting up a police force. I’ll text you the details.”_

Tsukauchi was quick to type. The location was only a mile ahead. It would be faster to jump.

Back in the Order of the Deadwood, Mr. Germaine had started the ritualistic killings. He drew a pentagram, one that he copied from the BEGINNERS GUIDE TO SUMMONING ANCIENT AND POWERFUL GHOSTS. VOLUME 2. And began arranging the hearts of the victims he had carved out. The Japan branch had 30 members. 2 were working the night shift and wouldn’t be back until 7 in the morning. Three were stuck in traffic.

It was fine. He only needed 13 members to perform the ritual anyways. The book said that you could do it with three but Germaine thought that it wasn't cliche enough to follow. He invited Tanaka but the man always looked squeamish whenever he looked at Darrel the Zombie. Best not to include him. He’d be a servant once they summon Pariah again.

If Shota had been a little early, he still wouldn’t have been able to save them. He was almost there, almost at the address the Tsukauchi gave them until a big green beam shot up into the night sky, turning the clouds a dark murky green, like seagrass. The green beam was at the address where the raid was supposed to be. He hurried up.

* * *

About 6, 324 miles away to the West, the ghost king was currently banging on pots and pans in an attempt to summon another ghost.

_(That ghost is called Clockwork. Clockwork decided to not hear anymore. After all, ghost don’t have physical bodies that needed tending to. He is not the Master of Fixing Teen Problems now is he?)._

The portal had, well failed. It wasn’t built to last 200 years and Danny admitted that he wasn’t smart enough to rebuilt it. He also didn’t have the resources. There was nothing inside the FentonWorks aside from broken wires and ghost rats. He had tried making a portal of his own but all it did was lead him back to the lab.

Danny doesn’t know what was happening in the present at the moment. He still doesn’t know what a quirk is or that superheroes get fair wages now. He hadn’t gone outside the lab in a week. A normal human would crave food and water but Danny was far too depressed to remind himself that he was still half-human. Humans were poorly designed to do stuff such as eating, pooping and sleeping. Very inconvenient and time consuming really. He wished he was a tardigrade sometimes.

Overall, Danny decided to switch to his ghost form because it made the hunger, thirst and sleep go away for a little while. He sat there in the darkness, inside the portal that killed him, doing nothing.

Then came a voice. Multiple voices were begging for help. His core vibrated, and Danny sat up by reflex. At the end of the tunnel, a violet swirling portal had appeared. 13 shadowy figures with hollowed out chests were extending his arms out him. A little shadow waved at him like a 10-year-old child.

“Help us.” They said, voices of women, men, and children overlapping. “Please.”

He couldn’t refuse. Danny flew inside.

The first thing he saw were human hearts being offered to him by 13 people. Their chests carved sloppily with a serrated knife. Danny knew they were already corpses at this point. Undead corpses being controlled by someone in the room. The most obvious person would be green robed man with the biggest pointy Viking helmet. He was the only one standing. And from the looks of his gaping mouth, he did not expect to see young Danny.

* * *

When Germaine saw that the ghost he summoned did not have a crown floating above his head, was not 10-foot-tall, and did not have an eyepatch, a Viking helmet, and a red menacing aura that would drown the sky in red for a thousand years—He knew that was fucked.

He thought—No—he was sure that the book was supposed to summon Pariah Dark, Master of Space and Darkness, Harbinger of Chaos, and The All-Mighty High-Ghost King of the Infinite Realms. But it didn’t.

Instead he summoned a white-haired, tanned, pre-pubescent boy who was wearing a black hazmat suit with white gloves and boots; on the center of his chest, a white insignia, that he recognized, was inscribed. D and inside it a black P. The symbol of the tutelary spirit, Phantom. Who was in fact, the Master of Space and Darkness, Harbinger of Chaos, and The All-Mighty High-Ghost King of the Infinite Realms. This fact is known by all ghosts except Danny.

Germaine was in stupor. He failed to notice 12 people kowtowing before the ghost king. He was the only one standing; frozen as he was coming to understand that the ghost in front of him, is looking at him with menacing green eyes. Eyes without iris or pupils, just a mass of illuminating green.

The boy balled his fists and they lit into green flames. The undead sacrifices were kneeling before their master.

That master wasn’t Germaine anymore.

One of his members had raised his head to see the King. “Isn’t he a bit short.” He commented.

“Shush!” Mr. Germaine hissed at him. He still couldn’t move because if he did, he was going to die. It was unwise to insult ghosts. Especially, _this_ ghost.

“All Hail the Ghost King!” chanted his members. Phantom’s eyes were glowing brighter.

“You were trying to summon Pariah Dark, weren’t you?” The question was directed at Germaine, in a voice that was hollow and echoing. He gulped. “And you killed all these people to do it.”

Phantom waved his gloved hand across the undead. Their eyes started glowing the same shade as the ghost boy. They turned towards Germaine, eyes blazing and ready to pounce.

“YOU WILL PAY!” That echoing voice boomed.

The dead attacked.

The cult members were not completely stupid. It was already obvious that the child before them was not Pariah Dark. They still bowed though because they knew how powerful ghosts were.

It was chaos. The living ran away from the dead as their spirits flew from their bodies; they were humanoid shadows, with green circles for eyes and a hollowed out center, where the heart should be. They each picked a cult member and brought fear into their minds. It didn’t matter if one of the members had a powerful quirk. Cant’ hit what you couldn’t touch.

Phantom grabbed Germaine’s neck, lifting him up in the air. “Please have mercy, Phantom.”

“SO YOU KNOW ME.” Phantom’s voice echoed like a demon. He tilted his head, raising a confused black eyebrow. “Am I speaking English?”

Germaine shook his head. He doesn’t know how the ghost boy was speaking Japanese either. Magic was very easy to blame.

The boy shook his head, thinking that Germaine was a bigger problem than speaking a new language without at least learning it. His eyes focused back at Germaine.

“I know you don’t kill,” said Germaine hoarsely. He knew all about the ghosts that use to plague Amitypark 200 years ago. He heard all the stories from his grandfather who heard it from his grandfather before him. Phantom was the most famous ghost, a ghost that guarded humans from his own kind.

Phantom tilted his head again. If it wasn’t for toxic green eyes and wispy white hair that flowed like flames, Germaine would have thought that he was just a regular child. “You did your research.” he said, voice still echoing. 

A male voice suddenly screamed like a pig in slaughter. Phantom chuckled.

“THERE ARE FATES MUCH WORSE THAN DEATH.” He said in a cold whisper. Frost escaped from Phantom’s mouth.

The shadowy figure of his last victim, Tanaka’s co-worker, was behind Danny. An oozing green smile on his face. Or at least, what should be his face. He was pure, solidified shadow.

“I’ll give you the honors,” said Phantom nonchalantly, and dropped him. The last thing Germaine saw was Tanaka’s dripping green eyes before screaming into nothingness.

The door to the warehouse busted open. A swarm of police were too late to stop the murders. Several things were happening at the moment; about a dozen people in green robes were lying on the floor, shrieking in terror—13 dead bodies with carved out chests, hundreds of candles lit in green fire, and a floating boy right in the middle of everything.

Tsukauchi and Aizawa were the first to enter. Eraserhead activated his quirk.

* * *

He hated cults. His friend Sam thought they were cute.

She eventually changed her mind when they started doing human sacrifices.

It had been a thing in Amitypark back then. The town had been split in half if Phantom was too blame. It was obviously the cult's fault but some people argued (The Mansons minus Sam) that if Phantom wasn't here, three people would still be alive.

The sacrifices happened a three days before Danny decided to take his nap.

It turns out the raw human emotion of a human begging NOT to be killed during a ritualistic murder, as an effort to appease the great Phantom, got transferred to him. That kind of thing might have worked for Spectra but not for a guardian spirit like Danny.

Besides, Spectra would be more merciful to her victims.

The other reason Danny did not like cults because he thought they were unnecessary. All the pentagrams, and the incense and the sacrifices were not needed. If they wanted to summon him, all they needed was effort of will.

Danny could be summoned using a bag of potato chips and someone repeatedly calling his name. You didn't even need to draw a circle, there wasn't a need for candles or any of that nonsense. No one needed to die.

Ugh, Cults were such theater kids. Of course, it would be ridiculous to go all the trouble of ominous chanting, sage candles worth 1000 dollars, and dark robes just to pour a packet of $2 potato chips inside an elaborately drawn magic circle that took 2 days to finish. Cults were all about aesthetic as well. Besides, human sacrifices were good for morale. 

Of course, Danny could always say no to being summoned. Ghosts have a way to press mute to any summoning. Danny did not know how to do that yet.

Now he was in a literal bloody warehouse, 200 years into the future, with the police barging inside.

He was going to be public enemy number 1 again. Better escape before they try to arrest you.

Then Danny felt a sharp stinging pain throughout his body. It was similar to whenever his powers were being short circuited. He fell without a sound.

"?" Panicking now. He tried to use his powers but it was like turning a tight jar lid that shocked you whenever you turned it. Danny hated getting shocked. It was how he died.

He scanned the room. Several people in tight spandex were running inside. They always paused at the sight of Danny.

Scarves wrapped around him. He couldn't phase through them because the jar wouldn’t budge. Something or someone was restricting his powers.

"Hey!" Danny struggled.

"You are coming with us," said Aizawa gruffly.

Danny glared. "Why are you staring at me. That guy," he gestured towards the leader—Germaine, in all fours, silently screaming, his mouth wide open. "killed all these people." Danny finished. He tried his powers again, twisting and twisting until—

"You're still coming with us." Aizawa finally blinked. The lid alas twisted open.

Danny vanished and flied.

Afterwards, 13 people passed out, and the air shimmered like distant blinking stars.

The spirits job was done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this during quarantine while I was reading Terry Pratchet and Neil Gaiman and decided to follow the writing style. It might read like that for the first couple of chapters.


	3. I'll Sleep When I'm No Longer Dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Japan deals with the consequences of the latest massacre. Danny goes through depression and through narrative purpose meets Aizawa.

They called it the Deadwood Murders and it was basically the only thing that showed up on the news. Right next to that was celebrity hero gossip on how Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods were spotted getting out of a love hotel. (The photos were professionally edited but it was rather good for publicity for both their agencies.).

Journalists crowded the police station the moment the news came out, and the news came out rather swiftly. The green light that shot up the sky like tractor beam had been seen as far as Okinawa. People thought it was aliens, sane ones assumed it was a quirk. But whatever it was, it made pro-heroes swarm it like moths.

A man named Tanaka Yuri had informed them, too late really, about the massacre. He tried to explain what the Deadwood Order was about to the press (His face and name were kept a secret of course. He fortunately, lawyered up and argued that he was being brainwashed and threatened by the cult, thus avoiding jail time). The Deadwood Order was an ancient organization that dated back to Old Europe…

…When he started talking about ghost, the press companies knew that they hit a goldmine.

Aizawa Shota brought flowers to the mass memorial service. There were a hundred or so people that attended. A lot of them were from the families of the 13 deceased people, some were police officers who offered to pay their respects, a couple of heroes came as well. The incident was shitstorm. Activists had blamed it on discrimination as a foreground on why the rescue failed. Experts and Social activist had argued that if the victims were not quirkless, the case would have been solved in a day.

Aizawa agreed. The Quirkless were invisible. Probably why the cult targeted them.

The seats were reserved for families and friends. Heroes and the police were standing at one side. Some were comforting the victim’s families. It was a miserable sight. One woman ahead wept and screamed her son’s name. Shota remembered the cleanup crew hauling off a child’s body during that awful night. The boy was about 10. He had two teeth missing in his picture.

A small part of him blamed himself. He had failed to capture the strange glowing boy in the warehouse. His quirk was still unknown but many of captured Deadwood members claimed that he was probably a ghost.

They still hadn’t found the glowing green-eyed boy whom the cult summoned. Not that Shota was worried but if their informant was right, that boy was the most powerful ghost in existence. Germaine, the cult leader was still in the hospital, and suffering from night terrors. Those that were involved in the ritualistic murders had been incoherent and delirious; like they had suffered from a fear inducement quirk. It had happened before back when Shota first started, but the quirk’s effects usually wore out in about a day.

The lights inside the flickered for a moment. Shota looked up and scrunched his eyebrows. The hairs on the back of his arms stood, like there was too much static in the air. But since he was a sensible person, all he thought was, there’s someone with an electric type quirk in the funeral home. He was wrong.

It was actually due to a young boy who was 16 in age but 14 in appearance. He entered the funeral home at the same time the lights flickered. It would be correct to blame him on the flickering lights and why the room had gotten colder even though one of the air-conditioners was broken.

Shota didn’t see him because the boy was at the back looking even more miserable than the family’s victims.

* * *

There was a public memorial spot, where sympathetic citizens and heroes looking for publicity, created for the victims of the Deadwood cult massacre. It used to be a bus stop but the city council decided to lend it temporarily for a few weeks, or until everyone forgot about it because of civilians dying due to damage from Hero 'vs Villain fights. The former bus stop was filled with flowers, smiling photos of the deceased, notes and letters from high school students who were forced to write it, for an assignment, there were food too. Mostly cookies and sandwiches.  
  


Danny should have been at the cemetery when they buried the victims. But he promised to himself that he was never going to set foot in any graveyard. He opted for leaving ice flowers in the bustop.

It was Shota’s turn to patrol the city. He had finished grading his student’s papers. It was 2 am, and he still had an hour and 30 minutes for a hopefully uneventful patrol. He passed by the bustop where the public decided to commemorate the victims of the most recent massacre. It was hard not to notice the young teenager in black leaning solemnly on the glass wall. He ignored it and started with his patrol.   
Luckily for him, the night was peaceful.

At exactly 3:33 am, he passed by the bustop again on his way home. The kid was still there. Still leaning on the wall like he hadn't move for an hour and 30 minutes.  
Shota approached the small boy. He couldn't have been older than 15.

"Hey, kid. Shouldn't you be at home? It's late."

Danny didn't hear the man. He was far too busy staring at little Aoi's face. Aoi was the ten-year-old boy who was murdered in the Summoning. As what he like to call it.

"Kid?" Danny still wasn't responding. He had a blank look in his eyes like that of a cartoon, one without pupils and colored grey because the blue crayon was lost. He also looked like he hadn't slept in a week. Shota had been there, the eyebags and pinkish sclera were a surefire sign.

Shota nudged his shoulder. Finally, the boy flinched, turning to his side to look at Shota. His eyes wide as dinner plates.

"I don't have any money!" he said automatically. Shota should have been offended at that. But he had been mistaken as a burglar plenty of times because of his outfit. Showing the person his hero license usually calms them down.

  
"I'm a pro-hero. I'm not here to hurt you." He explained.   
Danny blinked, not really sure what a pro-hero was. He finally realized that he was the scruffy man at the warehouse a couple of nights ago. That didn't calm Danny.

  
"Where do you live? You shouldn't be out at this time. Haven't you heard of the news lately." said Shota gruffly. 

Danny backed away. He realized that the pro-hero in staring suspiciously at him looked like a competent adult not unlike the ones in Amitypark. Better run now or he figures out who you are. Danny thought. He made his usual terrible excuse about being all sad on how those terrible things happened to all those good people or whatever. 

"I'm going to go now." Danny said each word carefully. He started to sprint. 

"Hey wait! Are you going to be okay, kid? I can take you home of you want." Shota offered. The boy looks thin and tired. He doesn't know what’s going on at home but he must have been related to someone who died in the murders. 

"I'm fine!" Danny yelled. He was now running as fast as he could, which was about as fast as lost toddler. "I'm going home now. To my house. Which I definitely live." He added quickly. 

Shota thought, "That couldn't have been more suspicious." he really should have followed the boy but decided that stalking a teenager did no sound good no matter how he said it. Even if it was just to make sure that he got home safely. Shota turned on his heel, and walked home. Two nights later, Shota passed by the bustop again. It was his regular route going home after his patrol. He checked his watch.

* * *

Time: 4:42. The kid was still there, standing still as a cardboard cutout. It was not healthy for a teenager to be it out at this time of night. Aizawa approached him once more and saw that his eyes did not look any better than it did two nights ago. Did he even get any sleep these past two days?

Shota wasn’t much for conversation but the kid looked like he needed it.

“Tragic.” He said with no particular emotion.

The boy didn’t seem to hear him. His eyes were distant.

“Did you know any of these people?”

This time, Danny answered. His voice hoarse like he had been screaming. “Yeah…” He pointed to a photo of a 10-year old child. One of the victims. Shota did not bother to learn his name.

“That’s Aoi. He was taken by his P.E. teacher,” said Danny, sighing sadly. “He had just made a friend too. Had so much trouble making them apparently. Wanted to be a paramedic when he grows up.”

Shota blinked and wondered how the kid could possibly know that information. The way he explained gave Shota the impression that he knew the child deeply.

“And that— “said Danny, pointing at another photo of a Deadwood victim. It was of a teenager. About 18. “—her name was Inuzuka Misaki. This guy she liked finally asked her out. They were supposed to go on a date at the amusement park. She was taken in an alleyway.”

“You seem to know a lot about the victims,” said Shota suspiciously. The boy gave off an eerie air that reminded Shota of a ghost from a horror movie. Something was just not…quite right about him. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but standing beside gave him goosebumps.

“Hard not to, when they’ve been offered up to you.” The boy said bitterly, then he pursed his lips tightly, closing his eyes like he just said something he shouldn’t have.

Something click inside Shota’s brain. But that couldn’t be. He thought at first. But then stranger things had happened. Then what the boy said next made it clear: “Shouldn’t have said that.”

The boy finally looked at Shota. Their eyes met. Shota squinted at him. “You’re the boy in the warehouse,” said Shota bluntly. He should really be more surprise or at least, bit skeptical but a literal cult had tried to summon a ghost and for the hell of it, IT worked.

The boy shrugged. Shota gave him a once-over—He was still wearing the same outfit two nights ago; a crumpled black button up shirt, black pants and shoes. Shota erased his previous thoughts about the kid being a creepy. All he saw right now is a sad child. Hero instincts had taken over.

“Have you eaten?” asked Shota. “Come with me, I know a good ramen shop not far from here.”

Danny shook his head. Hunger was the least of his problems. He was far too busy waiting for pain of the sacrificed victims to go away in his system.

“I don’t have any money, sir,” said Danny politely.

“It’s my treat.”

* * *

The Ramen Shop Not Far From Here took 10 minutes to get there. The noodles arrived at half that speed. Danny was staring at the swirly pink and white thing on the top of his beef. He forgot its name. A show was name after it, as he recalled. It would be rude to ask for a fork, he guessed. It was good that he knew how to use chopsticks. Fenton’s eat a lot of takeout because it turns out that food tasted better when it wasn’t attacking you.

Shota fixed his eyes critically at the boy who introduced himself as: “Danny Fenton, sir,” In perfect Japanese. Danny was currently slurping at his noodles. He wasn’t very good at using his chopsticks, though, in Shota’s opinion. It was obvious that the kid was starving because the bowl was finished in 30 seconds.

Danny sighed in bliss, but Shota could tell that he was still hungry because he was staring at his untouched noodles. Danny immediately straightened up when he noticed Aizawa looking at him.

“You can have it,” said Aizawa, pushing the black bowl towards Danny.

Danny was far too hungry to protest. He continued eating. Shota ordered two more— “No wait, make that five.” He said to the waiter. “And add some tempura.”

The gangly waiter nodded and came back three minutes later with their order. Shota helped himself to the tempura.

They sat there and ate, there were a few people in the restaurant. There was the occasional noise from the kitchen and the slurping sound of noodles. Danny finally looked up from his bowl. His eyes met with the older man across him. Danny was suddenly feeling very embarrassed.

“Sorry. It’s been a while since I ate.” Danny explained, his voice solemn.

Aizawa raised an eyebrow. “How long is a while?” He asked.

Danny wanted to say, “200 years” but he wasn’t ready to explain that to him yet. So he said: “Longer than 3 days.”

Aizawa made a sound in the back of his throat that made it clear to Danny that he wasn’t buying his lie. Danny finished his fourth bowl and he was still hungry, not that he was going to tell Aizawa that. He did his best to hide the fact that his stomach was still asking for more. It worked seeing how Aizawa was no longer ordering more food. Danny felt a bit guilty that the man was spending his money. He probably doesn’t have much since he dressed like a hobo.

Aizawa tilted his head, observing Danny. The boy was definitely not a ghost. For one thing, ghost don’t eat, and the boy right now look like he could consume an entire four-course buffet.

“Danny,” Aizawa began with a sigh. “Are you really the boy in the warehouse.”

“Umm…” Danny decided to lie. “No.”

Shota (slightly) glared at him. He perfected his glare back when he first started as a teacher. If he used his full glare, he was sure that Danny was going to disappear again. “Usually, when people lie, they try their best not to sound so uncertain.” Shota commented. Danny slumped. There was no use hiding it anymore. He practically admitted it back at the bus stop.

“I’ll try my best next time.” He said in a small voice.

Aizawa place his hands on the table gently. “Look, normally, I would escort you to the police station to be interrogated. But you seem like a nice, tired boy so I opted make sure your fed first. Why did you escape?”

“There were police. I didn’t want to be blame for murder.” Danny defended himself, pouting slightly. It was nice of Aizawa not to arrest him right away. Danny didn’t realize how hungry he was until he ate.

Shota reminded himself that he was talking to a teenager and teenagers don’t really respond well to cops and heroes all looking at him like he was a suspect. “Besides, you did something to stop my powers. I panicked.” Danny finished lamely.

“It was standard procedure. We didn’t know if you were a threat. There were 13 people on the ground, screaming in terror.” Aizawa told him. He tried his best not to sound like he was blaming Danny. “It was natural for us to assume…”

Danny raised his hands in a placating gesture. “I know, I know. I get it.” He said irritably which wasn’t hard because he had been irritated the moment he found out about his 200-year-old nap. “You were right to be suspicious. But I didn’t kill all those people.”

“But the terrors? The cult members are going to be transferred to a mental institution, you know. Nobody could figure out how to cure them.”

“I don’t know. I didn’t do that. I may have encouraged it but I didn’t think that _they_ would go that far.” Danny explained.

“Who’s _they_?” Aizawa inquired.

“The ghosts,” said Danny like it was obvious. He picked up his bowl and raise it to his lips, drinking the delicious soup.

“Ghost aren’t real.” Aizawa said bluntly. Danny shrugged and placed his bowl back down on the table.

“Sure they are. How else will you explain it?”

“A quirk.”

Danny has been hearing that word twice now. First it was the little girl with hooves and now it was Aizawa. No one bothered to explain to him what it was yet but it must have something to do with how people have four arms or wings these days. Back in his day, a quirk just meant odd.

Danny had a guess that quirks means superpower these days, but him being Danny, he asked: “What’s a quirk?”

Aizawa furrowed his brow. “Some people may call it a superpower.” He said.

“Oh. Why do they call it quirks then?” asked Danny.

Shota did not have a good feeling about this. It was strange for someone to be asking those kind of questions. Has he been living in isolation? He thought. But it doesn’t make any sense because the boy clearly has powers. Shota guessed it was some sort of transformation quirk.

“Because,” Aizawa said slowly, “Not every power is “super” kid.” Unlike yours.”

The look on Danny’s face made it clear that he was still confused. He tried to sum it up as fast as he could and the thing that first pop up in his mind was:

“Oh, so like in the comics.” He said.

Aizawa shrugged, rolling his eyes. “Yeah. Like in the comics.”

“How?”

Aizawa sighed. “Rat’s mostly. It’s the common theory.”

Danny made a face. “Gross. Like the plague.” He says. You see, Danny is still unaware that he was the reason why quirks even existed. He finally finished last bowl of ramen.

“So, ghosts?” Aizawa said, changing the subject. “The cult believes that this powerful ghost king. Frankly, I just see a tired teenager. So mind, telling me exactly what you are?”

Danny played with his fingers for a while before answering. He sighed deeply. “You won’t believe me.”

“Try me.”

“No you won’t.” Danny said firmly. “You don’t even believe in ghosts. I don’t know if you’re going to believe what I’m going to tell you next.”

There was a pause. What was it that was so unbelievable anyways? Shota was in the line of work where unbelievable things happen all the time. They were living in a world that no one could every predict in existing. Two hundred years ago, quirks appeared and everything basically decided to get weirder as the time past.

“A lot of things has— _had_ happened, okay. It’s a lot. And I don’t know if I should tell you because I’ve never told an adult about this yet. And..and..we’ve only just met.” Danny said wearily.

There was a pause. And then came a sigh out from Aizawa’s mouth. The sun had risen up.

Aizawa growled. He opened his mouth but closed it again unsure what to say next. Danny resembled a dirty cat that was kicked and thrown inside a dumpster. There were a lot of things that he didn’t know about the boy aside from his name and the fact that he doesn’t know what quirks are. It was getting late (or early really), and Danny’s red rimmed eyes made it clear that he needed sleep. Aizawa raised a finger up in the air to signal a waiter that he was going to pay his bill now. The waiter arrived a few minutes later with his bill. Aizawa reached into his pocket until he caught his wallet and handed the waiter a few thousand yen.

He was the first to stand up. Aizawa looked down at Danny and said: “Do you have a place to stay?”

Danny shook his head.

“Come with me, then. You can crash at my place until I take you to the police.”

Danny flinched immediately. Not because the older man he just met suddenly invited him to his place. Out of context that would sound like the start of a porno. No, Danny wasn’t worried about that—he was worried about sleeping. The act of closing your eyes to get some well-deserved rest—something that everyone does, and something that Danny recently decided that he’s had enough of.

His human body was screaming for him to go to bed and sleep again. Every time he feels like nodding off, he pulls some energy from his core to keep him awake. He was afraid that if he sleeps again did, he wasn’t going to wake up for another hundred years maybe. Talking to the police would probably be a better way to distract him. Well, Danny could fly away—but then what? Everyone he ever loved was dead. Besides, perhaps there was no use to keeping a secret identity anyways. Flying and turning invisible were normal now.

Danny stood up quickly, “I’ll be fine.” He tried to keep his voice even. Aizawa raised an eyebrow. “What time is it anyways?”

“6:15,” said Aizawa glancing at his watch.

“I think I’m ready for questioning now. You said it yourself, didn’t you? The police. Something about the murders…” Danny trailed off, drumming his fingers on the table.

“I figured that could wait. You need sleep first.”

“I’m good. Besides, the sooner we get this over with the— “Danny couldn’t finish. He doesn’t have a clear goal in mind anymore. His mind blank.

Aizawa started to give him a slow, critical look, “Alright,” he conceded. “What the hell. It’s not like I haven’t done an all-nighter before.” He pulled out his phone and dialed Tsukauchi’s number. Shota figured that Danny would be more responsive to someone who’s quirk could detect lies.

The sun was already high in the sky now. They were outside, waiting for a taxi. Danny kept on tapping his right foot on the pavement not because he was bored but because the energy he kept on pulling from his core was not working anymore. His body (and perhaps, his core) decided to enough was enough. This was not healthy, and I refuse to continue this any longer, young man.

Danny’s knees wobbled. He gritted his teeth to stop himself from collapsing like an 18th century maiden after finding out that she was to be married off to a man thrice her age. He fished for some energy back again but his core was retreating to…well wherever it went exactly. He just knows that he couldn’t mooch off it any longer.

A taxi stopped by the curb from where they were standing. Danny was used to the yellowcab taxi’s they had back in the U.S. not this black, blurry thing in front of him.

He heard Aizawa calling his name. But it sounded so far away…Danny opened his mouth to say something to Aizawa whose hand was gently cradling his back to prevent him from slamming his head into the pavement. He forgot what he was going to say, and then his eyes slammed shut.

* * *

Danny opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was a high, white ceiling. The smell of medicine waved through the air. The events that happened the previous day suddenly poured towards him like a bucket of ice cubes under his shirt. He bolted upright.

He checked his watch and saw bright letters blinking “3:45 P.M.” He looked around and saw that he was in a hospital room. Based on the window to his right, he was probably at the third floor. A thin plastic tube was taped to Danny’s arm, it traveled up to a plastic bag with clear fluid. Danny’s black clothes were replaced by soft clean, white hospital pajamas.

Danny has never been hospitalized before. The feeling was unfamiliar, he never needed a hospital ever since the Accident happened. Injuries usually healed when he changed back from ghost to human. Being cared for by professionals gave off a rather comforting feel. But that feeling eventually passed and he was rapidly feeling the dread of being dissected. He checked under the covers and was relieved to find out that he wasn’t restrained to the bed.

A nurse entered the room. The most distinct feature about him was that his hair was a bright shade of pink. It didn’t go well with light green scrubs in Danny’s opinion.

“You’re awake.” He said cheerily

“What year is it. How long have I been asleep?” Danny asked quickly.

The nurse smiled. He didn’t have a nametag. Danny always assumed that medical professionals have nametags. “You’re a heavy sleeper aren’t you. But it’s nothing to worry about, just a small coma. It was only three days.”

Danny sighed in relief, visibly relaxing on his hospital bed, which was way softer than the bed he had back at Fenton Works. He groaned silently now that he was thinking about his old bed, wondering whatever happened to it. There were some pretty risqué magazines hidden inside the mattress.

The nurse checked his vitals, and changed the saline solution hanging on a white metal rack.

“Where’s…” He tried to remember the name of the man who fed him. “Aizawa?”

The nurse checked something off from his clipboard. “He’s not here yet. Would you like me to call him for you, send a message?”

Danny’s mouth felt dry. “I’d like to have some water.” He asked politely.

“Oh gee. Just a minute,” said the nurse in a chipper manner.

The nurse bend down to where the mini-fridge was. He took out a cold bottle of water, twisted the lid open and handed it to Danny who finished it in one gulp.

The nurse stared at him in awe. “Wow. That was fast.” He said, and then took the empty bottle from Danny’s hand, chucking it to a nearby trashcan. “Do you want some more.”

Danny gave a firm nod. “Yes, please.” He said.

Danny now had three bottles of water on his lap. He finished all of them in under a minute. The nurse went out and came back carrying a small plastic cup filled with pills and another cup of water.

Nurse handed him the small plastic cup. “What’s in these?” Danny said, a hint of suspicious to his voice.

“They’re just multivitamins. You’re severely undernourished.” He said plainly.

Danny nodded. He brought the cup to his lips and tipped it so the pills went inside his mouth, then he grabbed the cup of water from the nurse and gulped everything down.

“There’s a good boy.” The nurse smiled. “How are you feeling?”

Sad. But he wasn’t going to tell that to a stranger. “I’m okay.” He lied. The nurse seemed to accept this. He told Danny that there were police outside to watch over him and that Aizawa would usually come to check on him at 4:30 P.M.

“Do you want to watch some T.V. while you wait?” The nurse had a way of speaking that sounded almost condescending. Or was that just Danny being paranoid. Danny rid himself of the thought.

“I’m good.” Danny said, shaking his head.

“Alright. I’ll be right back with some food.” The nurse came back again carrying a tray. There was soup on his plate, a rice curry dish, and a strawberry yogurt juice box. Danny’s stomach rumbled. He gobbled the whole thing up, and placed it on the table to his right. A few minutes later, Aizawa arrived with another familiar face beside him. The man reminded Danny of a Japanese Dick Tracy.

“It’s good you’re awake. The doctors were afraid that you weren’t going to wake up.” Aizawa said clearly. There was a couch in front of Danny but neither Aizawa nor the man beside him decided to sit on it.

“Everyone thought you were dead.” Aizawa added, eyes scrutinizing him.

Danny gulped. “What made them change their mind?”

“Brain activity. And there was a slight pulse.” He answered, shrugging slightly. “How do you feel?”

Danny avoided their gaze. He was still feeling very sleepy. “Hungry.” He decided. It was true anyways.

“This is Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa. Remember him?”

Danny glanced at the man, “He was with you at the warehouse.” He said, remembering that awful night. “Pointed a gun at me.” Danny added. “Glad you didn’t shoot though. Not that it would matter.” He inhaled. For some reason, his chest felt heavy.

Tsukauchi furrowed his thick eyebrows. He looked at Aizawa as if they were speaking silently. He focused his attention back at Danny once again, and pulled out a small notebook from underneath his coat. “I’ll just be asking a couple of questions.”

“Don’t bother lying because Tsukauchi here can tell. It’s his quirk.” Aizawa said coldly.

“Hmmm…convenient.” Danny commented. “Okay. Lay it on me.” Having someone who could tell if he was lying was good. But then it still didn’t eliminate the possibility of them ruling out that Danny was crazy.

“What is your name?” Ah, standard question. “Danny Fenton.” Danny replied.

“Where are you from?”

“Amity Park, Illinois.” Tsukauchi scribbled down the answer in his notebook.

“Age?”

Danny paused. He did the math in his head. Technically, he would be 216 years old but biologically, he was still 16.

“16.” He chuckled.

Tsuckauchi squinted his eyes at him. There were times when his quirk would tell him that a person was lying, telling the truth, and both. This time, it was both.

“Hmm.” He hummed before asking the next question. The next question should be: What is your relation to the Deadwood Orders? But he was a detective, and for the love of god, he was going to pry. Tsukauchi asked a different question.

“When were you born?” The look on Danny’s face made Tsukauchi smirk. But the answer that came after wiped that all away.

Danny knew that this was coming. He was going to tell someone eventually. It was weird to tell his secret to strangers. He’s kept it a secret for so long that the mere thought of mentioning it to anyone who wasn’t Sam, Tucker, or Jazz made him sweat. But he steadied himself and thought, ‘Welp. It wasn’t going to stay a secret for long anyways.”

“April 4—“ He paused for dramatic effect, “1990.”

There was silence. Aizawa and Tsukauchi exchanged glances. They were not expecting that answer.

“You mean to say—“ said Aizawa.

“—That you’re—“ said Tsukauchi.

“—Two hundred and _sixteen_ years old— “They finished.

Danny finally looked at both of them to see their expressions.

“He’s not lying.” Tsukauchi confirmed.

“Pretty spry, for a 216 year old.” Aizawa commented, dryly. Danny shrugged. He was good at that.

“I need to sit down.” Aizawa said and walked towards the couch, sitting in front of Danny with his legs spread out.

“I know it’s hard to believe—“ Danny began, “—Hey I was shocked to—“ rambling from the sound of it “—I was just supposed to take a nap but then, I didn’t exactly expect to wake up to the year 2207, I didn’t mean for this to happen—But then…” Danny let out a curse and slumped further back into his bed that he was literally phasing an inch through it. “I mean—I was just so tired. So much was happening with school, and the ghosts…wouldn’t stop…And then…everyone I know is dead now.”

He said the last words in a sad whisper.

There was another brief silence that hung in the air as if three people in the room were waiting for someone to speak first. Finally, Aizawa volunteered.

“Why don’t you tell us from the beginning.”

Danny sat upright this time, taking a deep breath, his chest rising as he did. Tsukauchi decided to sit down next to Aizawa on the couch. Danny decided that he was just going to give them the Sparknotes of his Origin Story. Telling them about the Accident, even _thinking_ about the Accident meant reliving his death. It was going to give him a panic attack.

Danny rubbed his hand on his nape, a habit he did when he was unsure what to say.

“I’m half-ghost.”

There was silence. The kind you get after someone tells you something outrageous. Tsukuachi and Aizawa beckoned Danny to explain.

“Basically, I’ve died but not really.” Danny added helpfully, but not really.

“What?” said Aizawa. He sneered as if what Danny said was an insult to logic (which it does. Ghost don’t really care about that sort of thing).

“That doesn’t make any sense. How can someone be both alive and dead at the same time.” 

“Maybe he means, it’s his quirk?” Tsukauchi ventured.

Danny groaned inwardly. He reminded himself to be patient to two grown men who were probably smarter than him and had the authority to put him in jail.

“Look. That’s the best I can give you okay.” Danny said testily. “It’s not a…quirk…or whatever. I was not born with these powers. I know I didn’t pay attention to the news often, but I’m sure I would know if people suddenly had superpowers. I got them in an accident. An accident I rather not tell because it upsets me, ALRIGHT.”

Aizawa was still not convinced. Tsukuachi decided it was best to humor the lad. “Okay. Let’s say, you are a— “He paused for a moment. “—A half-ghost. How did you get here?”

“Well, there was portal and I was summoned— “

“No. I meant, how did you get _here_. In the year 2207?” Tsukauchi said. The kid mentioned something about wanting to take a nap. He already had a guess to what Danny might answer. Tsukauchi just wanted to hear Danny say it.

Danny began playing with his fingers, “Umm..It’s kind of embarrassing. I went to the graveyard and—“ Danny let the answer hang in the air like a piece of smoked bacon. The adults would have to connect both dots.

“R.I.P.” Aizawa finished in a horrified tone. “But you would have suffocated.”

Danny shrugged. “Ghost don’t need to breath.” He said plainly. Tsukauchi continued on writing on his notepad. “And, the Deadwood Murders? You were really summoned?” said Tsukauchi.

Danny sighed heavily. The conversation about the Deadwood Murders was something he did not like to remember, but for the sake of the police investigation, he had to cooperate. “I had nothing to do about that. There are a hundred ways to summon ghosts, a human sacrifice is hardly needed. But cults needed the aesthetic, I suppose.”

“So this wasn’t the first time?”

“No. The first time happened three days before I…slept. Three people were murdered. Most of the town blamed it on me even though I had nothing to do with it.” He grumbled. The memory was still fresh on his mind. Not as fresh as the Deadwood Murders though.

“The town knew about you, I suppose.” Tsukauchi said.

Danny shook his head. “They knew about Phantom. It’s the name I call myself when I’m in my ghost form—the form that you saw in the warehouse—when I’m not Phantom, I’m just…” he gestured a hand to his torso. 

“What can your ghost form do? Most people only have one quirk, or at least an aspect of their quirk. You seem to have plenty.”

“Oh just your basic ghost powers,” He said nonchalantly, “I can walk through walls, disappear, and fly.” Tsukauchi listed those down. It made sense. He knew ghosts were invisible. They were very famous for walking through walls, a very ghostly trait that is. And flying…well, supposedly they mostly just hovered a few feet from the ground. Tskuauchi assumed that the list would end there after all, there wasn’t any more was there.

And then Danny told them more. “Ecto-blasts, ecto-shields, overshadowing, Super-strength, night-vision, duplication, though I’m not really good at it yet. I can only go up to three at a time… I have this Ghostly wail, but I only use it for extreme cases. It tires me out…Hmm…what else, what else…Oh Ice Powers! Those were new. I only got them for 2 months so I haven’t quite mastered it yet.” Danny rambled. He never told an adult about his powers before. It excited him and certainly took some weight off his shoulders.

When he finished, the only response that Aizawa and Tsukauchi could do was blink. Twice. Finally, Aizawa said: “Is that all?”

Danny seemed to think this through. He made a detailed list some time ago and stored it in his computer. But that was no longer an option. He would have to make the list again. Danny racked inside his brain, trying to remember if he had any other powers. At least, those worth mentioning. He snapped his fingers and said:

“I can make portals. But I’m not very good at it.” He tried it once but it never seems to lead him to where he wants to go e.g. ending up in a market in Chinatown, New York.

Aizawa’s silence prompted him to say more.

“And minor telekinesis too.” He added.

“But you’re not very good at it.” Aizawa ventured conversationally.

Danny’s face twisted. Not horror movie twisted, although he could do that in ghost form, when he wanted to scare Jazz. Just, ordinary, human capabilities twisted.

“I don’t know It’s not a power I normally use I think I used it to lift a rake once.” He remembered the whole Pandora’s box fiasco. The rake was far away and he wasn’t going to pick it up just to hand it over to the Box Ghost.

Aizawa glanced at Tsukauchi to verify if Danny was telling the truth. Tsukauchi nodded somberly. Aizawa sighed. There’s a powerhouse in the hospital. Worse, it was a teenage powerhouse who’s not very good at making portals and duplication, and lifted a rake once using his mind. Those powers, by itself were…well, powerful. There was something in the way Danny said it though—Not very good at it—He says.

There was something hidden there. Aizawa was a teacher, and whenever his students would say: “I’m not very good at it.” They would say it dejectedly after hours and weeks of training, like that was it and there was nothing else to improve. It was Aizawa’s job to encourage them to try again.

But when Danny said it. He shrugged indicating if it wasn’t worth trying, that it was not a problem. I’m not going to need it anyways. And If I do, I’d be good at it by then.

This worried Aizawa. He did not need to try because Danny had other powers he was probably good at. Intangibility by itself was impressive. Aizawa thought of Mirio Togata. The boy was the closest that came to becoming the next All-Might. Paired that with invisibility, flight, super-strength and…

“Ecto-blasts?” Aizawa asked.

“They’re like lasers.” Danny answered. “But don’t worry, they can’t’ kill people.” Danny added quickly after seeing the look on Aizawa’s face.

There. Lasers. The boy can shoot lasers. Aizawa had a feeling that the powers Danny told them was not the only things he could do.

Tsukauchi didn’t ask Danny again what other powers he had because he had a feeling that if he did, they were going to stay in the hospital all day and by the time they finished, Danny would probably gain another power he didn’t think he had and say in a dumb voice, “Huh, I didn’t know I could do that.”

Come to think of it, Danny still didn’t explain what he did with the cult members. Aizawa explained that it was ghosts apparently who scrambled their brains and that Danny had nothing to do with it. Tsukauchi needed to know more about these…ghosts.

“Tell us more about ghosts, Danny.”


	4. You're never too old to go to school.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny stays with the Aizawa while his case is being reviewed. It's taking too long. The boy needs education. Aizawa pulls some strings and introduces him to U.A.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am on a roll! So not my best work but it's there. There isn't that much action in this guys. Sorry if my writing style tends to change as I progress. I write better after I read a novel. Comment down below if you have any suggestions for me because I honestly dont know where this story is going.

Ghosts

  
Sure. Why not?  
  
From what Danny explained, they're obsessive and dangerous. The really powerful ones are capable of leveling cities while the less powerful ones according to Danny are just "annoying", "make me miss school too much" and Aizawa's personal favorite, "enslaving the minds of millions with just a magic guitar"  
  
But not to worry. Danny Phantom always comes to save the day.  
  
Except when he doesn’t. Aizawa doesn't know much about Amity Park. He doesn't follow news outside his home country. At least not irrelevant ones. So Aizawa, decided that in order to keep his sanity, he was just going to stop thinking about it too much. Ghosts weren't his area. The end. He'll let Tsukauchi handle the details.  
  
"So All Ghosts are villains?" Tsukauchi summarized after that long explanation about ghosts.

  
Danny made a face. "I wouldn't say villains. Some of them just want to blow off some steam? "  
  
"Yeah because whenever I get upset, I put world domination up in my morning To-Do List,” Aizawa commented dryly.

Danny winced. He felt that he needed to defend his half-kind. “There’s some good ghosts out there. Like—Frostbite. He’s an ice ghost that helps me train sometimes.” He said.

"Frostbite?" Tsukauchi repeated. The name was a tad uncreative for a ghost.

  
Danny understood why the detective was furrowing his perfectly trimmed eyebrows. A lot of ghost names weren't very creative. Some of them puns. Ghostwriter and Phantomime (No relation) for example. But Danny spoke ghost speak and he knew that those names were a lot more different translated.

  
"well—in ghost speak that would be—"

  
The words spoken from Danny's mouth were not words that existed in any human language. It wasn't even possible for any human, nor mutant, to do what he did. It reminded Tsukauchi of a demon from a horror movie, but worse, and it was filled with so much static and horrible clicking noises making his eardrums vibrate.

  
The three stared at each other in silence for a moment.

  
"What?" said Danny, perplexed. Did he say something offensive?

  
"Please never do that." Aizawa said slowly.

  
"Do what?"

  
"Moving on—" Tsukauchi decided to continue the questioning. There was no point to them discussing why Danny sounded like an eldritch abomination. He probably was one anyways. Tsukauchi was thought not to discriminate against those people. They _can_ kill you with a snap of their finger.

And so the day ended. Aizawa ended up taking temporary custody of Danny, and Tsukauchi ended up with another file on his already messy workspace.

* * *

Danny had never been in another adult's apartment before. The room was smaller than the living room in his old house. It would be a lot smaller though if Aizawa decided to put a sofa in what Danny assumes to be the living room of his tiny apartment. There was a yellow sleeping bag placed neatly on the corner.

"Um, so you just... Moved." 

  
"I'm a minimalist." he said simply.

  
Danny respected that.

  
"Don't worry. I have an extra futon for you to sleep in," said Aizawa. He opened the door to his right. Danny thinks that it was the bedroom because he caught a glimpse of a bed without anything that made it a bed, like sheets and a mattress. It came with the apartment and Aizawa hadn't slept there since he moved 5 years ago. Eventually, he came out hugging a white futon in his arms. He handed it to Danny who only looked at it.

  
"Thanks, but I've already slept.” he said.

  
Aizawa was not impressed. He shoved the futon to Danny that he was forced to grab it. "You need to sleep."

  
"Ghosts don't sleep," said Danny bluntly.

  
"Are you worried about not waking up?"

  
Danny looked at his futon. He nodded.

  
"Don't worry, kid. I'll promise to wake you." There was nothing comforting about Aizawas voice but Danny appreciated the gesture. He still wasn't going to sleep though.  
"I already said I wasn't going to sleep," said Danny, more firmly this time.

  
Aizawa sighed. He understood that Danny was afraid of not waking up again. "Listen, kid. You might think that you won't need it. But have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately. Do you want me to tuck you in like a little child?"

  
Danny's shoulders hunched even more. There was something so adult-like about Aizawa that he couldn't help but follow. Danny doesn't have a good track record with male authority figures. His Dad is dead, there's that. Vlad was a meglomaniac and Lancer, well, Danny didn't really like Lancer. He was okay but Danny never saw him as someone to look up to.

  
"Fine." Danny conceded. "As long as you wake me up."

Aizawa gave a smile that lasted a fraction of a second and then it was gone giving no indication that the man ever smiled before. “I promise. Now go to sleep.”

Danny slept and dreamt about the life he could have had if he hadn’t

* * *

They tried. But a lot of technology and records were destroyed during the American Meta-Civil War and according to history, Amity Park, Illinois was part of the losing side.

The history of the Fenton family remains only stories.

“So? Nothing about my family?” Danny asked as if asking for the second time would change Tsukauchi’s answer.

The detective shook his head. Danny was still staying with Aizawa because he was the only one who could handle Danny’s powers. Tsukauchi visited every now and then to check up on him, giving him updates about his case.

“What about Vlad Masters?” Danny tried.

“I thought you said he was evil.” Tsukauchi said. He remembered that interrogation in the hospital. He didn’t like thinking about the fact that the boy sitting in front of him was already dead. Well half-dead. Tsukauchi couldn’t get Danny to admit how he got his powers only that he died in an accident.

Tsukauchi searched Vlad Master’s as well because if he was anything like Danny, then he should also be alive at this time. The news of his ‘mysterious disappearance’ remained in archives because the mysterious disappearance of a billionaire made for a good news story.

“No sign of him. I contacted some of my sources in America but all they could tell me that he was some rich billionaire that disappeared in 2007.”

“What about— “

“I tried asking about the name Plasmius too,” Tsukauchi didn’t let Danny finish. He shook his head. “No clue.”

Danny touched his chin, contemplating.

“That’s not a good sign.” He muttered.

“Indeed. From your description, he could easily become one of the most dangerous villain on Earth.” Tsukauchi added. _We don’t need another All For One._

Danny opened his mouth. Clearly the boy had more questions. But crime was still happening and Tsukauchi was needed elsewhere. He retrieved a brown folder from his briefcase and handed it to Danny.

“Everything’s in here. The GIW, Ghosts, even Phantom. I did the best I could.” Tsukauchi said sadly.

Danny returned the gesture. He placed the folder into his lap deciding that he was going to read it later. “It’s fine.” Danny said, shoulders drooping. “There isn’t exactly a protocol for when a teenager from 200 years ago suddenly gets summoned to the present day.”

Tsukauchi chuckled. “Well, at least we’ll be better equipped to handle the next teenager to wake up from the dead.”

Tsukuachi stood up from the dining chair (Aizawa only owned two), tipped his hat and bade Danny goodbye. When he arrived at the door, he decided to tell Danny what was going to happen moving forward.

He turned and said: “Your case is a special one Danny. That being said, you are also legally dead and since you have no present or past records the American Embassy is having a hard time processing your case.”

Danny knew that this was code for, “They don’t know what to do with me, do they?”

Tsukauchi didn’t bother to nod. It would only upset the boy. He doesn’t want to tell him that the Embassy basically decided that they wanted _them_ to handle the boy since he did arrive in Japan through occult means. They’re doing their absolute best to slow down Danny’s case because they just didn’t believe Danny’s story. The fact that Tsukauchi vouched for him made them even more suspicious, still baffles him.

“Your case could take up to a year minimum,” Tsukauchi admitted.

Danny sighed, slouching further down on his seat. “Typical. American bureaucracy at its finest.” *****

“So. What happens now?”

* * *

“School.” Aizawa said dumping a 10 kg worth of books in front of Danny.

Danny didn’t even glance at it.

“I’m a little too old for school.” Danny smirked. Aizawa glared at him from above. The boy was currently lying down on his futon being useless. His case was still being reviewed by snails apparently. Going to school meant that Danny was busy. The boy needed education otherwise he might start to _think_. 

“Don’t start. You may be chronologically older than me but in mind and body, you’re a 15-year-old boy who still plays videogames to ignore the sad reality.”

“You didn’t have to attack me like that.” Danny pouted. “And I’m 16.” Aizawa had bought him a phone (to his protest because Danny always thought that Aizawa was one paycheck away from being homeless but the older man assured him that he was rather well off).

Aizawa crouched down to his level. “You’re depressed.” he said bluntly. 

Danny scoffed.

“And I know you haven’t been sleeping again.” Aizawa added. 

Danny glared. “I sleep.”

“Two hours?”

“Look in the mirror, pal.” Danny said low enough for Aizawa to still hear. He ignored it because he was an Adult™.

“I’m an Adult. I’m allowed to look like this.” Aizawa said. He was used to comments about his appearance mainly from the people closest to him. He didn’t mind. Being in the spotlight was never his intention.

Danny sat upright. He finally looked at the books Aizawa dropped on the floor. Some of them were in kanji. He might be able to understand the language, but he sure can’t read it yet.

“I don’t want to get attached.” Danny admitted, not wanting to meet Aizawa’s gaze.

Aizawa sighed again. He had to be patient with him. He's been through a lot. “Then don’t.” He said simply.

There was silence for a while. Danny grabbed a book. It was a science book and quickly flipped over some pages, searching for any space related stuff. The only good news he heard since he woke up from his slumber was that Pluto is a planet again. He hopes to find more interesting innovations from the space community.

“U.A. is a good school. I teach there. Unfortunately, you missed the Entrance Exam so I had to pull a few strings.” The corners of Danny’s mouth twitched after hearing that.

“I think you have potential, kid.” Aizawa said.

Now, Danny felt guilty. Aizawa was making an effort. Caring and everything. When was the last time a teacher actively gave a shit about him? Not since Lancer. He tried to make another excuse.

“I’ll be way behind my classmates.” It was a bad one because class hasn’t even started yet. But the important thing was that Danny tried his best.

Aizawa scoffed. “You’re also older. And from the stories you told me, way more experience than our third years.” That was a lot coming from Aizawa. He always gave the impression that nothing can ever reach his standards. “But you’re going to have to study harder than anyone for the exam. I’m confident in your ability to ace the practical, but you have 200 years of history to catch up.”

“Great.” Said Danny, “So No Pressure.”

“No that was a lot of pressure. I thought I was clear about that.” Aizawa said humorlessly. “I’m sure,” he paused, voice a tad higher than usual, “that you won’t…disappoint me.”

Danny nearly squeaked. He was pretty sure that it was a threat. General encouragements don’t really work with Danny but the possibility of making good parental figures sad certainly did the trick. He quickly started reading.

Aizawa lifted the corners of his lips. “There’s some kanji workbooks in there. I’ll be inspecting your work after.” He said before leaving Danny in his room.

* * *

Heroes get paid. Apparently.

_Well they had to pay the bills somehow_. His inner Aizawa said.

_Not right._ Said the overly obnoxious hero voice inside him. _Danny Phantom does not get paid to enact truth and justice to this world._

Slacker Danny makes another appearance in his life telling him that Danny needed some lovi’n, _“god, shut up._ _We deserve some hazard pay. You could finally buy that expensive NASA spaceship simulation that you always wanted, Dannio~_

What would Sam say though?

_“I don’t agree with it.”_ That was a voice that sounded suspiciously like Sam. “ _You’re better than that, Danny.”_

_“Don’t listen to her, Danny. She’s a stick in the mud. I on the other hand would love to be your publicist. It’s about time you got paid, man. I’ll take cash or credit. 8$ an hour.”_ Said Tucker.

_“Hey, if there’s anyone who deserves to be Danny’s publicist. It’s me.”_ Jazz says holding up her Danny Phantom scrapbook like a trophy.

“ _You’re right. I’ll be your manager then. My rates’ gone up to $10 dollars an hour. Plus a 5% commission for every baddie you put away.”_ Tucker says.

“ _Ugh, Tucker you’re such a_ —Danny! Wake up!”

Danny Fenton bolted upright. He had been using his breakfast as his pillow until Aizawa snapped him out of his dream. There was an egg stuck to his forehead and stayed there for a minute until Aizawa pointed it out.

“I know I told you that you needed to study but this is just overkill, even for me. You’re a kid. You need rest.” Aizawa says. He was across Danny, eating his breakfast of just plain rice.

Studying was just another excuse for Danny to not sleep. The dreams were too good. He could just imagine what Sam and Tucker would say about the world he was in now. They would be in his room; Danny on the bed, Sam on the beanie bag chair, and Tucker on his desktop computer. Jazz would come in after eavesdropping on the conversation desperately wanting to be a part of the group.

Oh what could have been.

Danny rubbed his temples. Aizawa was a lot more HD. “Sorry.” He says, shaking his head from the memories of the past. “I’m tired. Exam’s in 2 days. I don’t want to mess it up.”

That night graded Danny’s mock test results after only a week of studying. It wasn’t what he expected.

All Top Scores.

Clearly, Math was his weakest subject, getting 89 points but the rest were in their 90’s. Not bad for someone in his circumstances. His kanji was getting better as well. When Aizawa showed him the results, Danny had been surprised.

“Huh. I didn’t know I had it in me. My grades aren’t usually this good.” He said, looking at his test scores like he was seeing them for the first time.

Aizawa considered this. From what the boy told him, Danny acted as the impromptu superhero during a time when quirks did not even exist. He was only 14 when it happened. Balancing school, ghosts and hiding his secret identity from his parents—no wonder the boy thought he wasn’t good enough. Well, Aizawa was going to change that. He refuses to let a child take on an adults job no matter how much he says he doesn’t mind it.

Aizawa was going to make sure that Danny was going to be Plus Ultra.

* * *

Life was not much fun when you’re only 4ft tall and have the body of a bear-mouse-dog hybrid. Although it does come with some perks such as being able to ride on Aizawa’s shoulders.

Today is the day that principal Nezu meets Danny Fenton.

First impressions are always important. Nezu thinks that they make hero life easier in the long run. After all, in the world of celebrity heroes, one needs to be likable.

Danny Fenton made every single hair in Nezu’s body stand up. Not good.

Aizawa, of course, noticed why his boss suddenly looked like a discount children’s toy that gets displayed on the back of the shelf for being too spiky thus most likely a choking hazard.

Danny Fenton didn’t even come in yet.

“What’s wrong with you?” Aizawa asked. His boss was shaking, like an animal in flight or fight mode.

Nezu’s already dilated eyes were as wide as one of those gold chocolate candy snacks. Something was not right. There’s someone Not Human™ just outside the door.

“Where’s the boy?” Nezu asked, his voice low. 

At that signal, Danny peeked inside. “Hey.”

Nezu’s tail sprung upright. It took all of his self-control to prevent him from going on all fours like the animal that he is. The dog in him wanted to bark, the mouse in him wanted to hide in the darkest corner of the room while the bear in him longed to pounce.

Danny walked inside. Soundlessly. Towards Aizawa.

“So this the boy you’ve been sheltering for the past week.” Nezu says carefully. He was doing his best to make sure his voice doesn’t tremble in front of Aizawa otherwise the man would never let him live it down.

Nezu was NOT scared!

“I think I should leave.” Danny volunteered. He was not a complete dumbass. He knew how animals felt around him. Aizawa warned him in advance on what Nezu looked like. He wasn’t particularly surprised. It was not the first time he had to speak to a talking animal.

Danny stepped back but Aizawa held out his hand and grabbed the boy’s shirt, pushing him forward. The older man gestured for him to take a seat on the couch to his right. Danny obliged. His gaze flew to various knick knacks, trophys and plaques inside the office just so he wouldn’t meet Nezu’s eyes.

“Danny, stop—whatever it is your doing.” Aizawa said, noticing that Danny was the cause.

The boy shrugged. “I don’t have a say on this. Animals tends to be like this around me.” He said, voice loud. Him raising his voice caused Nezu to growl. Danny held up his hands in a placating gesture _Calm down, boy._

“This isn’t helping your case.” Aizawa mumbled, annoyed that his (future) student was already here scaring the principal, the only person capable of giving him admission to U.A.

Nezu was silent. He didn’t dare speak in front of that monstrosity. Damn! What the hell did he just think.

“I think I need some tea.” He said slowly.

“Danny, go wait outside.” Aizawa ordered. Danny didn’t complain. He stood up, opened the door and left.

Nezu managed to calm down after a calming cup of green tea and being wrapped in Aizawa’s nice warm capture weapon.

Nezu coughed. He’d be blushing if he could.

“There is something wro--Uncanny with that child.” Nezu said. 

Aizawa scoffed, deciding to ignore Nezu nearly slipping the word Wrong. “That’s a nice way of putting it.”

“I’m sorry that you had to see that. Just know that this does in no way affect my decision on admitting the child to this school.” Nezu was by the core, an educator. If he decides to reject Danny then he loses his pride as the principal of U.A.

Aizawa closed his eyes and sighed. “Good. I swear he’s a good kid.”

Nezu was still wrapped up in Aizawa’s capture scarf, he snuggled further into the layers. “I read your report on him. Powerful but ultimately still a child.”

“He’s been through a lot. But I think that with enough guidance, we can shape him into a great Hero.” Aizawa says. “Besides, it’s good if we keep him where we can see him rather than set him loose into the world. He may get some ideas.”

“Well, part of why U.A. was founded was to ensure the youth don’t get misguided. I would like to see what he’s truly capable of, preferably within a 100-meter distance.”

This time, it was Aizawa’s turn to smile.

* * *

The entire hero teaching staff needed to see it. They’ve heard about the Deadwood Murders from the news. It was hard to miss the bright green beam that shot up into the sky that day. The energy readings were off the charts according to various scientists who inspected the scene. They said that with that much energy, they would be able to power Japan for one million years.

The source stood on the other side of the screen. A 200 year old who is also a teenager. 

Danny was alone in the make-believe city. He was told that had to fight robots, and that he needed to destroy all the 3 pointer robots in the city. If he even leaves a single three pointer alone, he forfeits and loses his chance in enrolling.

“That’s it?” was what Danny had said to Aizawa when he explained the test.

Aizawa raised an eyebrow. _Oho, already confident I see._ “There are 50 robots.” He said. “They are scattered around the city.” The exam was designed with Danny’s multiple quirks in mind. They had to modify it to be harder to make it fair to the other applicants who applied on time. Hence, why it was all three pointers.

“Is there any particular reason why I should be destroying the robots?” Danny asked.

“They’re destroying the city.” Aizawa thought that this was obvious. There doesn’t have to be backstory to everything.

“I mean, seems like a waste of school resources.” Danny reasoned. Aizawa agreed. But this was the best they could do in the short amount of time. Most of the teachers were still busy with the entrance exam applications. The deadline was 2 days away. Danny already passed the written portion of the test with flying colors but they needed an instant evaluation on his practical to save time. If he fails, he had to wait next year. This is logical.

“We can always rebuild. Don’t worry about it. Go wild.” Aizawa smirked hoping that Danny would not in fact go wild. They had to see how he deals with minimizing property damage.

All Might couldn’t miss the show. He was curious about the boy that Aizawa picked up on the side of the road. Apparently the boy had multiple powers which worried Toshinori. Tsukauchi assured him that he was in no relation to All For One. Details about the boy had been blacked out for public view. So far, only Aizawa and Tsukuachi know about the true nature of the boy.

The horn blew. All Might watched in awe as two rings of light appeared from the boy’s abdomen, traveling towards his head and feet like an MRI scanner.

Danny Fenton turned into a completely different person. He had snow white hair, and glowing green eyes. His hero costume consisted of a black hazmat suit, white boots and gloves, and a thermos attached to his side. He didn’t know what the thermos was for.

“I am loving the magical girl transformation. Very convenient.” Midnight commented. She watched as the boy exhibited a flying quirk and began speeding throughout the city. The robots started to appear but they were no match for the green lasers Danny was shooting out of his palms.

“Indeed.” Nezu nodded. “It’s showy and saves time. Excellent for responding to a crisis. And perhaps blinding your enemies.” 

Danny fired a powerful green ray towards another robot.

“What’s in the thermos though?” Toshinori felt the need to point it out.

“Soup. Most likely.” Vlad guessed.

Danny shot a bright green beam towards three robots lined together. It went right through like they were no more significant than cardboard. There was a large monitor in the room showing a large robot count in bright green numbers. It read 35 robots to go…36…30…29.

Vlad whistled. “Those are some powerful blasts.”

“His speed in flight is not something to be taken lightly as well.” Nezu commented. Danny was able to reach the end of the fake city in seconds.

“Is this guy a superhero or what!” Mic said loudly. “He even has his own logo. I dig it. Where did this kid come from, Eraser?”

Aizawa stayed silent. He was a little disappointed in himself. He really should have added hostages to the pile just to push Danny even further. Aizawa underestimated his experience. The count was down to 20. It had only been a minute.

“Good reflexes.” Nezu said. There was one robot who got a too close to Danny while he was busy shooting three others. It sneaked up from behind but thanks to the boy’s good reflexes, he dodged by doing a flip in the air and fired a blast at the robot that was now in front of him. It exploded into pieces.

The counter read 15. Danny still had eight and half minutes left to go.

This time, Danny decided that the green blasts were getting a boring. He needed a _cooldown_. He brought his hands together fired a blue blast towards an incoming shower of robots that descended. They froze together forming a big block of robot ice.

The counter read 10.

“HE HAS ICE POWERS!” Vlad King yelled.

“Whoa, this kid is something else.” Midnight says, a hand on her cheek. She grinned lasciviously. “How delicious.”

“Easy.” Aizawa warned, glaring at the R-rated Hero.

“Oh I bet he would be.” Midnight joked, giggling in a way that she was imagining something dirty. “Kidding, Eraser~”

Aizawa glared anyways because his eyes were getting tired. He took out eyedrops from his left pocket and dripped them over his red rimmed eyes. He continued watching his ward, who was grinning and probably making bad robot puns (thank god there was no voice audio), while lifting two robots at once in the air and slamming them into each other.

“He has super strength as well?” All Might said. He was already sweating from seeing how many powers this kid was going to show them. He’s counted at least five.

And then the boy decided to add that number and separate his torso from his body so he could avoid an incoming laser from another robot.

“Body manipulation.” All Might said to no one in particular.

The count was down to 5….4…3…2—And then Nezu pressed the big red button for the big green robot.

Danny would have felt the earth shake if he was standing on it. He was about to fire a blast from the last robot when—

“What the hell? They said 50!” He yelled. He threw a ghost ray to the last robot. It exploded as one does when supercharged ectoplasm interacts with inorganic objects.

“What is he going to do?” Nezu says. He was enjoying himself. He wanted to see how Danny dealt with 0-pointer even though it isn’t technically part of the exam. Danny already passed but Nezu wanted to see how far he could push the teenager. Will he—

“Oh look, there he goes.” Nezu says cheerfully.

The 0-pointer was at the other side of the city, rampaging and destroying buildings. Danny flew towards it, arms stretched like superman, his eyes were nothing but blue orbs. Danny fired an ice ray at the base of the robot, freezing it from the inside out. Its feet were frozen. It couldn’t move. The torso was still moving its arms around trying to swat Danny out like a fly. He flew inside the robot’s chest.

The teacher’s watched in awe as Danny showed them another quirk. He can go through things apparently similar to one blonde haired third year. The robot’s red eyes dimmed and its head flopped to its front. Danny emerged from out of the robot’s head looking triumphant.

Final count is zero with just 7 minutes to spare.

Mic did the honors. The horn blew signaling Danny that the test was over.

Aizawa sighed in general. “Well it’s a good thing I already prepared the paperwork.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Remember this is a work of fiction. I don’t know how American laws or Japanese laws work.  
> 1\. I had to add in the trope of Danny having a terrifying effect on some animals. Dont worry Nezu gets over it. He's better than that.  
> 2\. My worldbuilding needs some work. Vlad's fate will be revealed, probably in the next chapter. Probably. I already have his fate written out. But I dont want to get into too much detail about what happened when Danny disappeared. I guess there was civil war in American when quirks arrived. Amity lost because I always felt that Amity Park is still going to be one of those weird cities that people ignore or make fun of because of rumors and the fact that they still claim to be the most haunted city America.


	5. Short One Shot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened to the Fenton House

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just want to add this in.

The Fenton House. The most haunted house in the most haunted city in America.

“Well, duh, its haunted. I live there.” Danny says after swallowing his food. It was lunch. Aizawa ordered takeout.

“Correction, you lived there.” Aizawa says raising an eyebrow. “According to this article, anyone who has tried to live there or attempted, has experienced several household malfunctions; faulty wiring, burst pipes, talking green rats with wings, and this one family reported that the oven brought their Thanksgiving turkey to life and attacked them.”

“Yeah. It does that sometimes.” Danny said flatly. He raised pad-thai noodles to his lips and slurped.

Aizawa hummed as he scrolled further. The article was hosted in Wikipedia. Till this day, the Fenton House still remains uninhabited. Someone tried to demolish it years ago but as soon found out that all their equipment malfunction. The point was, anyone who has ever trespassed into the Fenton House with the attempt of destroying it or living in it was met the fury of the ghost that haunted it. 

“Who owns it?” Danny asked. It was still his home. The thought that it belonged to anyone other than a Fenton made him uncomfortable. How would you feel if some stranger lived in your home, touching your stuff and Hey,that’s my telescope, get your filthy hands off of it.

“Some collector.” Aizawa replied. He looked at Danny. The boy was smiling. That smile was enough proof for Aizawa. He’s not surprised. Danny has multiple powers bordering on supernatural. Him being the reason for the Fenton House’s cursed status made sense. Still, no one died during their stay there. Grievous injury sure but never death. It must have something to do with the owner’s temperament.

“You could save up and buy it in the future. Although you’re going to have to work hard. The owner is refusing to sell it.” Aizawa said. The temperature in the room suddenly dropped. Danny was looking down on his fish like it insulted him. He looked up at Aizawa, his expression neutral.

“I can be very convincing.” He said, eyes flashing green.

Aizawa decides to ignore that.


	6. That Was Then

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jazz wakes up and finds that her brother is not in his bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter

Things happen whether we want them to or not. Let's press the back button on the remote of time and see into one of the infinite screens in Clockworks lair.

Zoom in to get a closer look at the events that followed.

Here we have Jazz Fenton. Early bird. She yawns and starts her usual morning routine. She brushes her teeth, washes her face. Always, she checks up on Danny.

Today he is not in his bed.

She shrugs and thinks that 'He's probably fine.' she's right. Although not for very long.

Maddie and Jack Fenton are in the kitchen. Maddie cooks while Jack tinkers with another invention which is just a baseball bat with ecto-crystals glued to it. Jazz is pretty sure that it's just salt dyed in green which explains why her eggs are bland.

It was 7:30. Danny should be going through that door feeling tired.

Except he doesn't. It's eight and Maddie is already starting to worry.

"Oh relax, Mads. He's probably with his friends," says Jack. He swings the new Fenton Creep Stick 2.0 around until it hits the dishrack.

The screen turns grey and static. It skips to where the Fenton's are driving around the RV with Danny's face as a banner. Maddie screams for her baby. Jack drives carefully.

We skip to the next scene. Two weeks had passed. Danny Fenton is officially a missing person. There are milk cartons with his face on it. Here the camera pans to three desperate teens searching for Clockworks lair using the Specter Speeder.

They never find it. 

Walk to the other screen. It shows the faces of Maddie, Jack, and Vlad. The three are sitting on the couch inside FentonWorks. Maddie is crying into her husband's lap.

"I shall put my best people to it," Vlad says. He does not lie. He sends ghosts to look for Danny. But even they won't dare approach the cemetery.

Cut to a new scene. It's Elmerton. You can tell because of color gradient switches to dark grey. Valerie is reading the newspaper. The front headline says PHANTOM MISSING IN ACTION. Below that:

DANNY FENTON STILL NOT FOUND.

Valerie blames the ghost boy. She is so certain that he kidnapped Danny. Wes Weston disagrees.

"Can’t you guys see?! Danny Fenton missing at the same time Phantom disappears! It cant be a coincidence. Fenton Is Phantom!” Wes yells. They never listen to him. He tries and tries. He speaks to Maddie and Jack Fenton but they scold the boy for disrespecting their son’s memory.

Wes Weston does not give up. Jazz Fenton tells the truth.

“He’s right, mom.” She says solemnly.

“About what, sweetie,” Maddie says, voice hollow. Jazz hesitates. She feels uncomfortable telling her parents about Danny’s secret. It should be up to Danny to do it. It should be _his_ choice. But he is not here. Jazz shakes her head. “Never mind.” She says.

Jazz goes to her room and opens her scrapbook. She still waits for Danny.

The calendar flips to 2007. So much has happened. Maddie and Jack shut down the ghost portal for good. Danny continues to sleep. The GIW disbanded due to budget cuts. Metahumans begin to emerge.

Vlad Masters is still the Mayor of Amity Park. He travels to the Ghost Zone. To Pariah’s Keep. The crown of fire and the ring of rage is floating on top of the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, just begging for Vlad to come and take it.

Zoom Out. Pause. See Clockwork’s back as he watches events unfolding.

Vlad laughs in glee. _Finally, After all these years. No more meddling teenagers to thwart his plans._ He was meant to be the King of all Ghosts. Now, it’s a close-up shot of Vlad’s face. The green flames of the crown of fire did not as much as illuminate but simply outlines Plasmius’ power-hungry grin. He puts on the ring. He places the crown on his head.

Vlad laughs.

He laughs for the last time.

Clockwork shakes his head sadly at the End. The power of the Crown and the Ring is too much for Vlad to bear. His face cracks, showing the scars of the ecto-acne years ago. It bursts in rays of purple light. The energy engulfs him. The crown and the ring burn into his body, consuming his very essence, eating away at his core until nothing remains. The Crown and The Ring are floating on the throne.

The circle screen of time cuts to green.

“Hmm...all the better.” The first Observant says behind Clockwork.

“Indeed. It was good, wasn’t it? Bully to him. He shouldn’t have attacked us during our meetings.” Says the middle Observant. He nods his large eyeball.

The third one feels that an explanation was called for: “Only the rightful King can wear the Crown of Fire and the Ring of rage without succumbing to its power.”

Clockwork holds out his hand. A purple blob ghost appears. He puts it in his pocket.

It would be nice to think that the Fenton’s eventually moved on. That Jazz went to Yale and Sam and Tucker each got into the colleges they wanted. Our characters choose to hope after the loss of their son, brother, and friend. It would also be nice that the ghosts of Amity Park stopped attacking out of respect for their favorite punching bag.

And perhaps that is what happened.

Imagine a world where Sam, Tucker, and Jazz got quirks. Dwell on the fact that Jazz eventually became a successful psychologist, Sam fighting for meta-human rights, and Tucker (good old Tucker) finally got a girlfriend in college and was treating women a lot better now. Possibly you would like to think that Valerie became one of the world’s first superheroes. After all, nothing could come close to that suit of hers. She fights bad guys, gets rich again, and soon the word ghost disappears from her mind.

You don’t want to know what happened to Amity Park during the meta-human civil war. It’s best to think about the good things. Think about Jack and Maddie dying peacefully in their sleep. Sam and Tucker had kids (with their respective partners) and Valerie retired after 20 years of service to her country.

It’s a good version isn’t it?

Jazz probably won that Nobel Prize she always wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is. I told you guys that i'd be making it as vague as possible. Honestly though, i wrote it like this because writing angst is not my specialty.


	7. This Is Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny goes to U.A.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of slice of lifey. But what the hell. I dont know where this story is going.

Clockwork stands in front of another screen. The year reads 2207.

‘ **And now we go back to our regularly scheduled program’**

“It would good to keep an eye on him until his case gets resolved,” Nezu says during the private meeting with Aizawa in his office. Danny Fenton had passed the exam and it was clear to everyone present that Danny was at a different level than the upcoming first-year students.

Aizawa hummed in approval. “We’ve already registered his quirk for the school records.”

“Oh? What did he name it?” Nezu asks.

“…Ghost,”

Nezu nodded. “Very appropriate.” He looked down at file on his desk. Danny Fenton’s photo was pasted on the right corner of the personal information sheet that all students were required to submit.

> Quirk: Ghost
> 
> Description: Ghost powers. Able to transform into a human and ghost at will. 

It was all the boy had written down on his quirk description sheet. Quite Vague. But underneath that stapled piece of paper, was the list of powers that Aizawa had given to him. It was what Aizawa had remembered Danny saying from the hospital and there was _a_ _lot._ All of them powerful individually. One power, in particular, was downright dangerous in this time and age—Overshadowing.

“From what I observe, there doesn’t seem to be any consequences to his powers,” Nezu said conversationally. Usually when one has an ice quirk, one suffers from eventual frostbite. Same with a fire quirk user’s tendency to overheat, risking their insides from turning into every cannibal’s dream barbecue.

“He’d say otherwise,” says Aizawa.

Ah, yes. The whole sleeping inside his cenotaph for 200 years and waking up with all his friends and family gone. Perhaps he should schedule some counseling for the boy. Although, their resident guidance counselor, Hound Dog would probably have the same reaction as him if he ever met Danny.

* * *

This is U.A. It stands tall on a hill and overlooks Musutafu City. Some are calmed by its presence and there are those that loath it.

Danny is not sure what to think about it. To him, it’s just a really big, very expensive looking building. It looks private school. Uniforms were compulsory. Danny is a little uncomfortable about that. All his life he was used to public school lunches, cramped up yellow buses with gum underneath the seats, chlorinated off-white tiles, and the smell of piss behind the bleachers.

Everything about U.A. was just so… _clean._ There were even inside and outside shoes! What even is that?!

Aizawa had some stuff to do in the teacher’s faculty so Danny was left to search for his classroom. Class 1-A. It wasn’t hard to find. The literal letters 1-A was painted on the huge-ass door. People were blocking the entrance. Danny gulped. He was nervous. He’s never been the new kid before. Scratch that, he’s never been the new, _foreign_ kid.

“Um, excuse me,” Danny says in a tiny voice. Three people were blocking the entrance. Danny was suddenly very aware of the three pairs of eyes that were staring at him. They parted for Danny to enter the room.

“My apologies,” the guy with blue hair and glasses says seriously before moving.

When Danny finally entered the room, more eyes focused on him. This was his first interacting with other kids his age. Every single one of them looks like the protagonist of their tv-series. There was a pile of floating clothes to his right, a kid with a raven’s head and someone who loved peppermint candy too much that he decided to wear it on their head. Wild.

Danny felt the need to say “Hi,” he says giving an awkward little wave before finding an empty seat at the very end of the row.

* * *

Dark shadow remembers green. And then there was light. He hates the light. It makes him weak.

Tokoyami Fumikage is his master, friend, and brother. They were born together although Dark Shadow is not entirely sure if he was ever born in the first place. There is a boy in his master’s class that reminds him of the Green. His first memory. Perhaps the boy knows his Origin. It would be nice to visit that green place again.

_We should be friends with him._

_Hmm…the foreign boy?_

It was rare for Dark Shadow to take an interest in other human beings. He’s always been a bit dismissive of their presence. They were squishy, he says. Tokoyami does not know the name of the foreign, blue-eyed boy but there was a certain presence about him like he was Important. Although, Tokoyami was not quite sure what that is yet.

_We should give him something._

_What? Why?_

_Anything. Let’s give him that poem you wrote in middle school._

_Let’s not._

Tokoyami met the boy’s gaze for a second. His eyes, a vibrant blue color. It stirred something inside Tokoyami that made him suddenly want to give the foreigner his edgy middle school poem of darkness. Luckily, for him, the new kid was out of the door before Tokoyami could approach him and perch on his shoulder. They were starting to look very comfy.

* * *

“The person with the lowest score will be expelled.”

Danny panicked. Why was he panicking? He had superpowers. He could easily throw a ball up in the air at 700 meters or more. No. It was the fact that he had to show his powers to his new classmates as Danny Fenton and NOT Phantom. The rest of his classmates seemed way too excited, except for the green-haired boy beside him who was trembling.

* * *

**First Test: 50 m Dash**

Iida at 3.04 s. Tsuyu 5.58 seconds. –Not bad scores for the first test run. Uraraka was creative, using her quirk to lighten her clothes. Bakugou literally blasted himself to reach the finish line. That Midoriya kid though needs some work.

Finally, it was Danny’s turn. Because there were now 21 students in his class, Danny participated alone. What was the kid going to do? Was he going to transform? Or was he capable of using his powers in his human form?

It turns out that Danny still had access to his ghost powers while in human form seeing how he flew to the finish line in less than 4 seconds. _He could have used his ecto-blasts to get there faster._ Aizawa thought as Danny walked towards the other students. Aizawa looked back at the score. He expected better.

Second Test: Grip Strength

Danny knew that everyone has superpowers. For the first time in his life, he’s not the odd one out. Watching other kids display powers that he only ever saw in ghosts, was discombobulating and mildly comforting. He is not in this alone. Danny could finally talk about his powers to other kids. He was excited. Giddy. He was…

_Why do I feel like I’m betraying Sam and Tucker?_

Danny frowned. They were dead. There was nothing he could do about that. Besides, he’d just be showing off. It’s not like he was going to form a bond with any of these people.

Right.

Danny inhaled. It was time for the grip test. It shouldn’t be too hard. He had super-strength after all. He gripped as hard as he could, to the point that his right hand was glowing with ghostly energy.

He heard a faint beeping noise and the sound of something hitting the wooden floor. Danny looked down. All that was left of the grip-monitor was the LED screen that had the number 9 on its cracked screen.

_Oh shit. I do not have money to pay for this._

Danny kneeled trying to salvage as much of the grip-monitor as he could. Aizawa approached him. He could feel the overbearing presence of the older man.

“What are you doing, Fenton?”

Danny winced. He looked up. “Um…” He tried to think of an excuse but the glare on Aizawa’s face made him rethink, “I’m sorry?”

Danny stood up straight. He felt the need to say, “I’ll pay for it!” because whenever stuff broke in Casper High because of him, the school always sent his parents the bill. He bit his lip after realizing that since Aizawa _was_ technically his guardian now, that means, _He_ would have to pay for the broken device.

Aizawa sighed. He waved a hand dismissively at the broken pieces. “Leave it. You’re not the first student to break school property,” he said and then left Danny’s vicinity. At that point, his classmates decided to surround him, giving him attention.

“I can't believe you broke the grip-monitor. That’s so manly of you!”

“Oh…thank you…I didn’t expect—“

“—You broke my record—“

“Seriously, man. How much did you get?”

Danny was not used to such positive praise from fellow students. He blushed. “Um...I’m not really sure,” He stammered.

Aizawa looked at his phone. Damn. He wasn’t even at full strength. Fenton could probably lift a school bus using his pinkie finger if he was in his ghost form.

**Fifth Test: Ball Throw**

Danny had aced the other test with little to no effort. He was up last. All eyes on him which he still wasn’t used to as Fenton. Danny looked at the ball in his hand. If he were Phantom, he would already have smiled, gone into a pitcher position, and say some cliché baseball phrase.

“Don’t have all day, Fenton,” Aizawa called.

Danny straightened up. He wrapped the ball in a concentrated ball of ecto-energy and pitched so hard that the very ground beneath him crumbled. The ball soared to the air.

Going….

going….

And…gone.

Aizawa held up his phone so that everyone could see Danny’s score.

“820 meters.”

_“Now that’s what I call a home run.”_

* * *

It was hard not to notice the American exchange student. Aside from being the only foreign student in Class A, he exuded an…unsettling aura.

Bakugou Katsuki was sure he was going to take the number one spot for the entrance exam. And he did. He’s never seen the boy before so it would make sense that he was accepted through recommendations.

He introduced himself as “Danny Fenton” after being surrounded by extras during the Second Test. The American had been so strong that he managed to break the grip-monitor. What was his quirk anyway? Katsuki thought that he was a flier but it turns out super-strength was included as well.

And the Ball Throw Test occurred. Katsuki had his mouth opened like the rest of the extras when Fenton wrapped the ball in some weird glowing green energy. He had thrown it so hard that there were cracks on the earth. How was that even possible? _What kind of bullshit quirk does this kid have?!_

It doesn’t matter. Katsuki told himself. He’s was the first at the exam. He wasn’t going to get intimidated by some American who had no right to be here by the way. Katsuki’s quirk was more amazing than his. Yes. That’s right.

Danny Fenton was an obstacle. A challenge. It was good that he was here. He was a stepping stone. A foil in his plot to become Number One and surpass All Might. After all, what better way to prove that than to beat some scrawny ass American.

The said scrawny ass American was getting tired from using his quirk too much while in human form.

There were probably consequences in using his powers while human too much. He hasn’t been able to sleep properly since…well he hasn’t really tried sleeping properly ever since he woke up.

_Not good Danny. Both physically and mentally._ A voice in his head that sounded like Jazz started nagging him. _Promise me you’ll get some sleep after this, okay._

 _Not now, Jazz. I’m doing some sit-ups!_ He scolded.

He was panting. He needed to transform. But doing that now was going to turn him into another circus attraction. Danny was not having with that. There were a couple more tests left. _Hang in there._

Katsuki grinned maniacally when Fenton suddenly started to slow down during the long-distance run. The American started flying at first before slowing down and then landing face-first on the track. Katsuki laughed as he passed by.

The results were up.

Fenton got Second Place. First was the Ponytail girl. Bakugou was fourth.

Sparks emerged from his palms. But Katsuki calmed down after seeing Deku’s name on the twenty-first placemark. Heh. _Called It._

So that was a lie. No one was expelled today. Much to Bakugous’ annoyance.

Danny was spent. He was panting the entire time after the long-distance jogging. He was pretty sure that the spiky blonde-haired kid was snickering at him after he fell from his flight.

Well, at least now he knows who was the resident bully. Danny made a mental note to avoid the guy as much as possible. The lockers in U.A. were for shoes or lunchboxes, not scrawny pre-pubescent teenagers. Danny’s flexible. But he is not _that_ flexible. He wasn’t ready to become a pretzel anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you guys want to read?


	8. School Is Boring And I Love It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny interacts with some of his classmates. It's almost time for the Battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is like a filler chapter at most. I was planning on making it longer but its like 1 pm here in my country. So that's going to have to wait until tomorrow.

Even elite hero schools couldn’t escape the droll of English, Science, and Math. The rest of his classmates felt that they were boring but Danny was shocked that he liked it.

As Amity Parks resident guardian ghost superhero, Danny had to miss school a lot because of ghost attacks. But this was the first time he’s actually _missed_ school. There was structure, it was rigid, it was the _same_. He still had to take English classes though because grammar, spelling, and basic reading comprehension were _‘Important building blocks to the path of becoming a hero’_ as what Present Mic said.

For the first time in his life, his ghost sense wasn’t activating 24/7. Whenever he looks at the window, all he saw was the sea and the city, and not Skulker’s bazooka being aimed at him every 6th period, or the Box Ghost materializing in the hallways ready to execute his Currogated Cardboxes of Doom.

The class dynamic was different in U.A. as well. Everyone seems to get along well with one another, with a few exceptions of course. During lunch, Danny was expecting that he was going to be alone at his table when several of his classmates decided to sit with him.

He doesn’t know all of their names yet. The pink girl with horns was the first to talk to him.

“You’re American, right?”

Danny pushed back until he reached the back of his seat.

“Uh…” Danny stuttered even though the answer was a simple, “Yes.”

The red-haired kid, Kirishima Eijirou, he remembered from yesterday, brightened up like his answer was some form of a life-changing event. “That’s so cool, man. What city are you from?”

Okay. Here it goes. Aizawa had told him beforehand that his case was _hush-hush_ so it was better to keep certain details out of his classmates' reach like the fact that he was actually from the 21st century.

“Amity Park, Illinois,” He said.

“I’ve never heard of that city,” said the pink girl, “My name is Ashido Mina by the way. You can call me, Mina. I know you guys in the West prefer your first names, right?”

“…Well, not exactly…”

Mina tilted her head beckoning Danny to explain. He knew that in Japan, the surname was the default and only people that were close to you could call you by your personal name without being disrespectful. That was the cliff notes version that Aizawa gave him last week.

Danny explained. You don’t address someone by their last name unless they were a figure in high authority, or if you just didn’t want to be respectful. Dash rarely called him by his first name. Back in Casper the people who called him Fenton were bullies, people he did not know, or teachers.

“…But you guys can call me, Danny if you want,”

“Nice! Heya, Danny. Why did you come here to U.A. instead of going to an American hero school?” Mina asked conversationally. She was sitting in front of Danny, Kirishima at her side, and a small green-haired girl to her left.

Danny took a bite from his curry before answering. He’s already practiced his backstory in the bathroom a couple of times so there was no way he was going to mess this up.

“I heard that U.A. was one of the best schools in the world,” he said.

Kirishima’s face brightened up. He punched the air. “Yeah, Man. Absolutely. Can’t wait for Hero Basics class after this.”

They continued eating their lunch and talking, doing their best to add Danny into the conversation. He’s had 200 years of pop culture references to catch up on. Mina and Kirishima were talking about their favorite pro-heroes. They had asked Danny who was his. He nearly choked on his food trying to come up with one.

“I don’t really have one,” he decided to stick to the truth this time. He was new. Both to the school and the time. And he hasn’t really bothered looking up any pro-heroes.

“What?” Mina said, leaning closer to Danny, “What about All-Might?”

Danny knew this one. All Might was in one of the history books he studied.

“He’s cool,” Danny said, playing safe.

“He’s going to be our teacher for Hero Basics later, _kero,”_ said the green-haired girl across him. “My name is Asui Tsuyu by the way. You can call me Tsuyu.”

“Nice to meet you,Tsuyu,” Danny replied with not much enthusiasm. This was awkward. How is it that he could banter effortlessly with his enemies yet lose face when he was with other kids his age? _But these kids have superpowers like you._

_They’re not Sam and Tucker, though._

_Come on, Danny._ Jazz always seemed to butt in whenever he was feeling like this. _Give them a chance. You can’t’ do this without a support system. They seem like nice kids._

And they are. Danny bets they are. But he’s 100% sure that they had never gone through what Danny did when they were his age. By the time he was 14, he died, fought ghosts and god-like beings, traveled through time and space and defeated a jealous clown with a glove that could change all Reality. These kids were _never_ going to experience that. Danny can’t even talk to them about that because those events happened in another country 200 years in the past. He couldn’t just go:

‘Hey, remember the time I went to space and destroyed an evil possessed satellite,’ Or, ‘Did you know I defeated the King of Ghosts when I was 14?’, and He was definitely not allowed to say, ‘It was actually me that caused the death of 13 people. I was the one that creepy cult summoned. LOL Wild, A’M’Iright,’

They were going to think that he was crazy. A _Freak_. Just some creepy little kid with creepy powers.

Danny gobbled up his lunch quickly and decided to head back to the classroom first. His classmates didn’t seem to mind.

* * *

Imagine you’re in America.

There’s this super-powerful muscular dude. He’s the top hero. He is super-white. He’s dressed as a ninja or a samurai. Or something Japanese themed. He puts his hair up in a ponytail and all. This dude’s name is probably some white people tattoo bullshit, like _Serenity, or Bravery_ but in Japanese. His signature moves are the names of cities from a country 6000 miles away. This Dude Is White. There’s no doubt about it. Why is he shouting _OKINAWA SMASH_ in _Ohio?_

Anyways, that’s basically All Might. Danny is weirded out by his vibe. It’s ridiculous. If there was ever an American version of All-Might, Danny’s pretty sure that Twitter would be his archenemy.

Danny learned of All Might after quickly googling some stuff from his phone. The cliff notes version was that He was the Number One Hero. The Symbol of Peace (Man, that’s pretentious). He has an unknown super-strength quirk. That’s it. Danny doesn’t know why everyone was so impressed by the guy. He’s like in his 50s.

All Might did some typical superhero pose and said in a loud boisterous voice:

“Today, we’ll start Battle Training!” He then pointed to the wall where a bunch of suitcases emerged like loose tiles. “And here are the costumes made according to your requests and quirk registration you sent in,”

“Go and get change in these, and then meet me in the Ground Beta,” said All Might, twirling almost like a ballerina towards the door.

A hand raised as straight as a ruler. “All-Might-sensei!” said the blue-haired boy with glasses. Danny always fixed him as the class’s very own hall monitor with engines for legs. A pain to deal with when you’re running in the hallways. He’d be the first one to catch you.

He introduced himself as Iida Tenya, quite loudly in front of the class this morning. Iida was the first to point out the “Lack of suitcases on the walls. Should I go and report this to the Support Department. Surely, they’ve made a mistake.”

Suitcase 21 was missing.

* * *

_Costume Fees. When you turn in your Quirk Registration, Personal Info, and Design before school starts. The school’s designated support company will make you a state-of-the-art costume._

“So I guess I won’t need to fill this out then?” said Danny to Aizawa as he was filling out the paperwork for enrollment.

Aizawa was currently preparing dinner. By that, he was in his yellow sleeping bag, waiting beside the door for the delivery man to arrive. Danny ordered some burgers for tonight’s dinner.

“Hmmm….” This was Aizawa’s version of a nod.

There was silence between the two for a minute. The only sound was Danny’s foot tapping against the floor and the yowling of stray cats outside. Ever since Aizawa took in the Fenton kid, the cats in his apartment were down to 4. There used to be at least 10 cats roaming that would greet Aizawa when he left. The four cats that remained were the only ones that did not hiss or tremble at the sight of Danny.

Aizawa _was_ a little curious about Danny’s costume choices though. Unlike _some_ heroes out there, it was relatively simple. A black, loose-fitting jumpsuit, white gloves, and boots. Perhaps the only thing that stood out from it was the logo. Not a lot of pro-heroes these days had logos like that. A D with an inverse P. Very artistic.

Danny’s hero costume did not stand out in any way. It didn’t need to.

He’s seen the boy twice as Phantom now. First at the warehouse, and second during his entrance exam practical. It was a whole different experience seeing him as Phantom in person. The warehouse where Danny was summoned had been dark that night, illuminated only by green flames and Phantom’s natural glow. The glow didn’t as much as illuminate though but outline him from the darkness. Aizawa wonders what he would look like in the daylight.

“How did you get your costume anyway?” Aizawa asks conversationally.

“Oh, I died in it,” said Danny without hesitating.

Aizawa needed a few seconds to make sure he heard that correctly.

“Sorry, what?” he said.

Danny gathered his paperwork and stuffed them inside a white folder.

“Yeah. Wild, right.”

Aizawa wouldn’t call that wild. It was bleak. The boy stretched his arms and yawned like he just hadn’t said something incredibly disturbing.

For some reason, Danny insisted that he half-died in an accident. He hasn’t told what kind of accident it was so far, and Aizawa decided to respect that. But sometimes you get upsetting statements like this, which makes you wonder how Danny viewed himself. Aizawa’s mind went to Nezu’s reaction. The terror in his eyes like he was seeing something that should not exist was plain. Maybe the kid really died.

Aizawa’s silence prompted Danny to say more. “My parents were inventors. They wore suits like mine all the time because we keep a lot of chemicals in our basement. But, I’m pretty sure they just wore them because it looked cool,”

Danny, in a rare moment, was freely talking about his past. Aizawa listened.

“—My parents custom made one for me and my sister. Mine used to be a white hazmat suit, black boots, and gloves. It had my father’s face on the center,” Danny said, pointing to his chest, smiling faintly, “But it was a good thing that my friend Sam got rid of it before I went insiAYY--”

Danny stopped himself. Eyes wide. His shoulders straightened. He looked away from Aizawa’s direction. There was a knocking noise.

“Foods here!” Danny said, his voice higher than it normally was. Aizawa was the one to open the door. The delivery man was used to this strange man in a bright yellow sleeping bag like a grumpy caterpillar. He gave the takeout bag to Danny who then started cleaning the table.

“That would 3000 yen,” said the delivery man. Aizawa fished a couple of bills from the depths of his sleeping bag and gave it to the delivery person while still leaning beside the doorway.

“Thanks,” said the delivery man before leaving. Aizawa closed the door, got out of his sleeping bag, and sat across Danny from his small dining table.

“You were saying?” Danny had abruptly cut himself off from saying something personal. It must have something to do with his ‘death’. Danny took a bite from his burger, eyes looking up at Aizawa.

“Oh, nothing.” He said with his mouth full. After swallowing his food, he continued the story of how he got his costume without giving too much detail into his death.

“Anyways…my friend Sam was the one who made my logo,” He finished.

“What about that thermos on your hip?” Aizawa decided to drop the subject of the whole dying thing. There were bets on what he kept in his thermos during the practical. He didn’t participate in it but Yamada had insisted that it was where Phantom kept his ultimate move. Vlad voted soup (sensible man). Midnight bet 1000 yen that it would be something pervy like girly underwear.

Danny instinctively touched his left hip like he forgot his keys or wallet. “It’s nothing,” he said shaking his head. “Just a thermos. I sometimes keep soup in it.”

“You need to work on your lying,” Aizawa commented offhandedly. Danny turned red. Well, Aizawa was not going to pry. It was probably nothing important. But why would he lie about it though?

Danny placed his hands on his lap. “I’ll tell you when I’m ready. I’m sorry, sir. But I don’t exactly trust you yet,” he said in a low, soft voice. _What the hell is in that thermos for him to act like that?_

“Don’t worry. There’s nothing inside that’s dangerous.” Danny assured him after seeing his expression.

Aizawa finally ate his burger.

* * *

“Nice catch, young Iida!” All Might boomed. He was nearly out the door when that glasses kid interrupted his exit.

“Not to worry. It’s not a mistake. Young Fenton,” All Might said Danny’s name so loud that all eyes were on him. Danny did not like that. He tried to look small. It was a habit he never got rid of since kindergarten school. Because when your parents are the resident lunatics, you learn early in life to make yourself small and invisible.

“You already have a costume?” Iida asked Danny.

“It was from my parents,” Danny felt the need to say after seeing Iida’s penetrating glare.

“But U.A. makes the best costumes especially for when you’re starting,” Kaminari said.

“Are your parent’s inventors? _kero_ ,”

Danny nodded. “Yeah. They are,” _Well were._

The sparkling eyes from his classmates were a sign for him to say more. He looked over to All Might. If he was part of the faculty, surely he knew of his circumstances. Luckily, the blonde muscled man was able to get the hint.

“Now, now, we are wasting time. Get change everyone. Time is of the essence when you’re a hero. Especially when you're changing into your costumes. Quickly, quickly,”

The class began approaching the wall to the left, grabbing their suitcases. Danny was the first to get out of the room. He remembers Ground Beta as the fake city where they held his practical. He rushed to the bathroom because that’s where he usually went to Go Ghost.

* * *

Todoroki narrowed his eyes at the sight of the foreign exchange student. He didn’t have much of a presence, to be honest. He tried to make himself small as much as possible and didn’t talk much. Shoto could relate to the last bit.

Shoto was sure that Danny Fenton was not a recommendations student. He didn’t see him at the test. So he must have taken the Entrance Exam along with everyone else. But he overheard some of his classmates gossiping about the American.

“I don’t recognize him from the exam,”

“He’s probably a Recommendations student,”

“But his name wasn’t on the roster,”

Who was that kid? And why doesn’t he have a costume?

Since the first day of class, Shoto had been observing his classmates in hopes to surpass them. Some of them were disappointing. Only a few caught his interest. Shoto’s goal was to become a hero without using his fire just to spite his father and to do that, he needed to surpass everyone in the class.

Fenton’s quirk was unclear. First, he showed flight. Then super-strength. Last was that glowing ball of energy he made during the ball throw. _Is he…a hybrid like me?_ Perhaps he should confront the American one of these days. He was going to ask while they change into their hero costumes but Fenton had run outside the door bringing absolutely nothing with him. He expected Fenton to come back, bring his bag with him and change but he did not.

“What a weird kid,” Shoto muttered.

* * *

He was the first at Ground Beta. Which was awkward because it meant being alone with All Might. The man just stood there, hands on his hips, chest out, like a typical superhero comic book pose. They didn’t say anything to each other for the first few minutes. He could feel the awkwardness in the air. All Might kept on smiling.

“Why didn’t you show everyone your costume right away, young Fenton?” All Might asked. “I saw the footage from your practical. You impressed everyone with your awesome costume change. Very convenient, I say!”

“I’m not really…used to transforming in front of kids my age…”

“Ahh…stage fright. Happens to the best of us,” All Might said, nodding his head.

“Oh look, everyone’s here!” All Might announced. “You all look great, guys.”

Danny has some… _Concerns_ …about his classmates’ costume choices.

_And I thought my parent’s jumpsuits were bad._

Danny was technically still a hormonal teenager even in ghost form. He was trying his best not to look at the busty girl in red. His mind imagined Sam slapping him on the head if he ever looked 5 seconds too long at Yaoyoruzu Momo. Tucker would have asked for her number with no hesitation. _Won't she get cold in that thing?_ _Japan is like 30 degrees this time of year. How are those boobs staying in place?!_

Danny shook his head. Forget about the boobs. A kid is wearing a diaper. Kirishima decided to up Momo’s game and have his tits out for everyone to see, and Peppermint head decided that it was a good idea to wear an ice sculpture obstructing his peripheral vision. Great. Danny sees a pair of floating boots and gloves. _Wait, does that mean?_

Danny quickly erased the image out from his mind. Hagakagure was _definitely_ wearing something. Yup. There was no way the Support Department was going to let an underage naked girl walk around in broad daylight. Even if that girl is invisible. You had to draw the line somewhere, right?

Well not all of them were bad. Danny likes Uraraka’s costume. It’s spaced theme. He's biased about that. Tsuyu was simple—Frog-themed—Gets the point across nicely. The guy in the motorcycle helmet is pretty cool though. Midoriya decided to go for the classic jumpsuit. Thumbs up to that guy. Although, the mask could use some work.

“Where’s Fenton-san? Huh? Who are you?” Midoriya said, looking at Danny’s direction. He was at the back of the group not doing anything in particular.

Danny raised a hand and waved. “Hey. It’s me…Danny,” he said the words slowly like he was saying them for the first time in his life. Revealing his identity to a bunch of kids just sent him flashbacks to the time he was hunted by the government. The GIW didn’t exist in this period so getting vivisected was surely not happening any time soon.

Unless Aizawa changes his mind or something. Yikes.

Midoriya’s eyes and mouth were wide. He pointed a shaking finger at Danny. Suddenly all eyes are on him again. He’s a little more comfortable about it now that he was Phantom.

“Whaa…Whaa..Thats…” Midoriya was at a loss for words. First, he saw Uraraka in a tight-fitting costume now he was looking at Danny Fenton looking like a different person. _Was this his quirk? It has to be his quirk. There’s no way this was the work of technology._

Fenton’s outfit was simple like his. But the fact that he was glowing like a neon light was amazing It wasn’t just the glowing aura though. Fenton’s hair was different. It was white, glowing, and moved back and forth like it was underwater. It didn’t look solid as well.

And there was his voice.

If a tunnel could speak, that’s what it would sound like.

Midoriya felt like he was in the presence of someone Important. He doesn’t know what it is yet but his heart quickly skipped a beat.

“Woah! Fenton. Is that really you?” Kirishima exclaimed giving Danny a once-over.

Danny smirked. “The one and only,”

“That is so cool!” Uraraka said.

His classmates were starting to swarm Danny. The poor boy’s smirk fell and he stepped backward as a response.

“I couldn’t tell if it was you,” Kaminari said.

“hehe…that’s the idea,” Danny mumbled.

“He’s glowing, yes. But can he shine?” Aoyama said, feeling the need to stake his territory as the sparkliest hero. He started doing some ridiculous poses showing off his cape.

“How did you even have the time to dye your hair white? We didn’t see you in the changing room.” Sato asked.

“Well, It’s part of my quirk, you see.”

Midoriya mentally tried to write that one down.

Then there was the sound of someone clapping their hands.

“We don’t have all day, Zygotes,” said All Might in a booming voice. The attention changed from Danny to All Might. Midoriya was always going to choose All Might although he needed to ask Danny more questions after this. 

* * *

Iida raised his hands up straight, “How are we going to be split into teams?”

“Because the class is uneven, there would be a team with three members,” All Might said. “As heroes, we need to be reminded that the odds are always against you. So the team with three members will be the villain team.

Iida opened his mouth, wanting to ask more questions but he was interrupted by All Might who signaled everyone to come and pick their teams by lots.

**Team A: Uraraka and Midoriya, vs Team D: Iida and Bakugou**

**Team B: Todoroki and Shoji, vs Team I: Ojiro and Hagakagure**

**Team H: Tokoyami and Fenton vs Team G: Kaminari and Jirou and Asui**

**Team E: Aoyama and Ashido vs Team F: Sato and Koda**

**Team C: Mineta and Yaoyoruzu vs. Team J: Kirishima and Sero**

“Guess, we will be fighting together, huh.” Danny said the obvious. He turned to Tokoyami

“I’ll be counting on you” said Tokoyami.

Danny smiled. The odds were against him. But when were they ever not. Oh, this was going to be fun.

* * *

**Excerpt of what to expect in the next chapter**

“Danny, is there tea in your thermos? Can I have some”

Oh god, Danny completely forgot about that. He’s kept the Thermos in his ghost form for convenience ever since the fight with Freakshow. 

“Uh…No.”

“Soup?”

“Sometimes?”

“Can I have some? I’m feeling a little peckish.”

“There’s no soup inside right now.”

“Oh. Why are you carrying it then?”

“In case I need some…soup.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> saw this interaction in tumblr where someone was asking Danny about his costume. It went something like this:  
>  Reporter: Danny where did you get the inspiration for your costume?  
>  Danny: Oh, I died in it.  
>  Reporter:  
>  Danny: LOL, Wild Right  
> I just had to add that in. Dont think about the pairings too much. I will not be going so much in depth with the other character fights. Comment down below what you think is going to happen. Or what you think the American All Might weebo hero name would be. Danny is still not used to professional heroes. Comment down below who you want to ask Danny for some non-existent soup XD


	9. The Battle Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The odds are in Jirou's favor. It's three against two.It needs to be. Especially when against Fenton.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your comments guys. I read them like I need to live. Again, comment down if you have anything you'd like to add to the story.

Danny has a bad feeling about all of this. He’s not close with Midoriya or any of class really, but even he could tell that his relationship with Bakugou was the same one he had with Dash Baxter.

It was the classic victim vs the bully scenario. Danny felt sorry for Midoriya. From what he’s observed during the Quirk Apprehension Test, the kid tends to break his bones whenever he uses his powers. Danny was so thankful he did not have any bones in ghost form, so he’s never had to worry about that.

Tokoyami, his teammate, is standing beside him. There is a familiar presence to the boy. Kirishima sidles up next to him, “Danny, is there tea in your thermos? Can I have some?”

Oh god, Danny completely forgot about that. He’s kept the Fenton Thermos in his ghost form for convenience ever since that fight with Freakshow. He just couldn’t tell them that it was used to capture ghosts.

“Uh…No,” Danny says, metaphorical sweat dripping down his forehead.

“Soup?”

“Sometimes?”

“Can I have some? I’m feeling a little peckish. Got to keep those calories up,” Kirishima says, beaming at him.

“There’s no soup inside right now,” Danny tells him.

Kirishima’s happy expression did not falter. “Oh. Why are you carrying it then?”

He tried to make up an excuse at the spot. The best thing that he could say was: “In case I need some…soup,”

Kirishima blinked, unsure what to think about Danny’s reply. _Well, that went well._ Danny thinks.

“Good idea, Danny,” Sato chimes in, “I keep some sugar cubes for my quirk as well,”

“Sugar?” Danny says. He waits for the _‘Yes, Dear?’_ reply but nothing came.

Sato poses. He flexes his muscular arms, making Danny feel a little bit insecure about the state of his. “Yeah. My Quirk is called Sugar Rush. Whenever I eat more than 10 grams of sugar, it increases my strength five-fold for three minutes,”

“Like a video game power-up?” Danny adds conversationally, “That’s pretty cool, man. tasty too.” 

“Do you want some?” Sato offers one piece of sugar cube he took from his utility belt to Danny. “I have more inside,”

Danny shrugs. “Yeah okay,” He swallows the sugar cube whole. You really can’t go wrong with sugar. Eventually, more students began asking Sato for sugar cubes.

“No fair, share some of your sugar, Sato-kun,” Mina Ashido whined.

“Stop it. If I give you guys more, I won’t have any for the battle,”

The monitor on the screen suddenly showed Bakugou doing a surprise attack, nearly blowing up Midoriya and Uraraka into bits. It was lucky that Midoriya was able to dodge. It was lucky for Sato as well because that distracted his classmates from asking for more sugar cubes like a bunch of hungry horses.

“Surprise attack? That’s so not fair, Bakugou,” said Kirishima. “How unmanly of him!”

All Might doesn’t seem to agree. “It’s a good strategy. Cliché as it is, always expect the unexpected.”

Danny nods. He’s had his fair share of surprise attacks from his ghostly enemies. All eyes were on the screen. It was intense despite the lack of audio. Midoriya had countered Bakugou’s move, flipping the blonde over to his back with a strength that only Danny could achieve when he is using his ghost powers. Bakugou was on the ground.

“What the heck are you standing there for, capture him already,” Danny said in the same way a character from a horror movie was about to do something stupid. When there is a timer on the clock, you learn to save the banter for later especially when you were already 15 minutes late to class. There is no audio. Midoriya had shouted something to Bakugou. He doesn’t know what it is, but the look on Midoriya’s face meant that it was something emotional.

“There’s a 15-minute time limit. The heroes are obviously at a disadvantage,” Mina said.

“You got that right,” Danny said. He said that little too loudly this time because a dozen eyes were suddenly staring at him. Even All Might.

“Care to explain, young Daniel,” All Might asks. Danny feels like he’s called out to explain the significance of the color blue in Shakespear’s literature. He gulps and does his best.

“Well, nine times out of ten, the bad guy is always going to be the one who’s already thought out their evil scheme right…” Danny began, “…Well, oftentimes, your enemies are going to be smarter, stronger, and older than you, especially when you’re first starting as superheroes….”

Danny fought his first ghost a month after he was still learning the ropes of his powers. He may be able to take on the Lunch Lady in his current state, but Past Danny didn’t even have ecto-blasts to help him that day. He had to rely on his fists, his wits, and the Fenton Thermos being smacked on his face. It was exhausting and painful.

Danny places a hand to his chest, “The really good ones…well not _good…_ they’re obviously bad…but they’re good at being bad…” Danny chuckled, feeling the awkwardness in the air. His classmates were still staring at him, with wide, gleaming eyes. Damn. He was not expecting a class report today.

“…Those bad guys are going to have more resources than you. Not that I’m speaking from experience, “said Danny obviously speaking from experience. He remembers Vlad Plasmius. His old archenemy. The richer, stronger, and older halfa. Sure there were times that he’d win their matches, but only because Vlad tends to underestimate people that are not Vlad Plasmius. Not that Danny is complaining but he’s always wondered what Vlad would be like if he wasn’t such a fruit loop.

“It’s like chess,” it was the only example Danny could think of just because Vlad always insulted him about not knowing how to play. “The white players tend to have an advantage in the game because they always make the first move. Our job as superheroes is to capture the king regardless of that fact,” He finished with a sigh, feeling quite pleased with himself.

“That’s a very well thought out comparison, Fenton-san,” Momo complimented. Danny rubbed the back of his neck. A habit he hasn’t gotten rid of after 200 years.

“Thank you. I don’t know how to play chess though, so don’t ask me how the little horsie moves,” Danny felt the need to say that fact before anyone asks him for tips. He’s a checkers kind of guy. It was simple. Danny likes it because there were no roles for any of the pieces to play.

“Indeed! A hero is one who can overturn any situation,” said All Might. He raises his left hand. “Everyone say—“

Everyone follows All Might. Even Danny, who raises his left hand lamely. They say the school motto together. There is a loud sound of voices overlapping together to say,

“—PLUS ULTRA!”

“Bakugou is…” Aoyama was the first to speak. All eyes are on the monitor. The battle continues.

* * *

Danny can hear certain frequencies a lot better than human’s kind. But that’s because ghosts can just decide to ignore the laws of physics whenever. Still, you don’t need superhuman hearing to hear the blast that Bakugou Katsuki just did. It blew a hole in the front of the building. The monitor room shook from the impact.

“Young Midoriya!” All Might yelled into his microphone.

The expression on Bakugou’s face was psychotic. Danny winces when the blonde hits Midoriya with one of his blasts right on the green-haired boy’s back. “Oh geez, that’s gotta hurt,”

“What was that!?” Kirishima says.

“He doesn’t look like he thinks, but he’s oddly detailed,” said Todoroki.

Danny’s eyes widen. “He is?”

Todoroki explains how Bakugou easily changes his course with a camouflage blast and fires one immediately after. Momo explains the physics on why this was amazing. “…It requires fine adjustments on either hand,”

“It does?” said Danny, still not getting it.

Kaminari says Bakugou is a genius. Danny looks back at the crazed expression on Bakugou’s face as he pummels Midoriya into the ground. “I highly doubt that,”

_Really, how hard is it to operate explosives, anyways. Why is everyone so impressed by that guy?_ As Danny continues to watch the fight, Danny realizes that he’s never seen a bully like Bakugou. He is Dash 2000. Smarter. Stronger. Angrier. Danny remembers the written portion of the exam. It wasn’t easy. There was some AP Math in there and very big words that Danny is sure Dash wouldn’t have in his vocabulary.

_Maybe he is…a genius. Not a mad genius but a Mad genius._

“His actions are not that of a hero,” said Tokoyami.

“You can say that again,” Danny adds.

The fight continues. Danny is a little disappointed about the lack of quips, witty banter, and the running away from your life while making fun of your opponent. Was he the only one that did this? These kids are taking this class way too seriously in his opinion.

Midoriya starts to run away. “Good kid. Only sensible thing to do in that situation,” Danny comments.

Tokoyami tilts his head, curious about what Danny said. “I don’t peg you as someone who runs away from a fight,”

Danny scoffs. “It’s called a tactical retreat, man. Run away, formulate a better strategy, go back and get the job done.” He’s had his own fair share of tactical retreats. Being sensible is what a hero is all about.

“Hmm, you’ve got a point there, Danny. But Midoriya can’t run away forever.” Kirishima said.

Danny looks back at the monitor, eyes fixed on Midoriya’s face. “He’s a smart kid. I’m sure he has a plan,” said Danny. “Remember the test Mr. Aizawa gave us,”

They remembered. Midoriya was the only one who got sent to the nurse’s office that day. “I’m pretty sure he thought of that one on the spot,” Danny smirks. He’s not blind. Midoriya has been communicating with his teammate, unlike Bakugou. “I bet you’ll see something rad soon.”

Danny continues watching the screen. Midoriya charges towards Bakugou. There’s a showdown going on.

Midoriya punches upwards. The roof is destroyed. Windows break. The building shakes. Danny laughs.

“Woah! What a blast, get it _blast_?” Nobody laughs. It’s not Danny’s best work, but it’ll have to do. They were too busy watching the spectacle on the screen.

Team A Wins.

* * *

Todoroki had frozen an entire building just by touching it.

This was the only time Danny was actually _impressed_ by one of his classmates. His mouth hung open. He looked at his hands.

_I wonder if I could do that._

He’s only had his ice powers for 2 months so he hasn’t experimented with any moves yet. Maybe he’ll try and copy Todoroki, they could compare notes and all. Todoroki had no mercy. Everything happened so fast, there wasn’t even time for any witty banter. It takes Danny to a whole new perspective in dealing with villains. It’s not how Danny would have handled it. The whole building is frozen now, what a waste. How was he going to get rid of all that ice when— _Oh Never Mind._ Todoroki somehow melted the ice in seconds.

“How’d he do that?” Danny asks.

“His quirk is half-cold and half-hot. His left side has fire while his right has ice powers,” Tsuyu answered. “No wonder he’s a scholarship student. It’s rare for someone with more than one quirk,” Tsuyu turned her green, froglike eyes at Danny as if he was a rare specimen in a history museum. Which, isn’t exactly wrong, to be honest. He’s old enough to be displayed in the Natural History Museum, preferably without being restrained.

Danny’s team was up next. He caught Todoroki’s eye as he passed by him and Shoji. _Even his eyes are different_. Todoroki was glaring at him. But that could just be Danny being all paranoid.

All Might handed them the building’s blueprints and capture tape. “Good luck, young Daniel,”

Danny flinched at the name. Even in Japanese, being called Daniel reminded him of a certain fruit loop. “It’s just Danny, actually.” He said.

All Might slapped him hard on the back. It pushes Danny forward. “Don’t hold back, alright. It’s not good to underestimate your classmates like that.”

Danny nodded, rubbing his back despite not feeling any pain. “Sure thing, Sir.”

All Might left, leaving Danny and Tokoyami to discuss the plan. They waited outside building C. The blueprint was simple to understand. If he were the villain, he’d be keeping the bomb on top because there was a higher chance that the debris would hit the other buildings.

Danny turned to Tokoyami. “What’s your power—I mean quirk anyway?”

“I call it Dark Shadow. It—“Danny held up a hand not letting Tokoyami finish. He just had a good feeling about what he was going to say next.

“Let me guess, you have a sentient shadow attached to you somewhere.”

Tokoyami blinked. “Yeah. Lucky guess.”

Danny shrug. “I knew someone with a quirk like that back in my hometown. I guess you can’t use it right now in broad daylight.”

“Almost. Dark Shadow is weak whenever there is light.”

Danny beamed. That was good news. There were still 3 minutes on the clock. Danny and Tokoyami went inside the dark building.

Dark Shadow emerges from Tokoyami’s back in the form of talons. It sends a familiar shiver up Danny’s spine. “They’re going to be on the top floor,” said Tokoyami. Danny looks up. He smiles.

“I have an idea. Get your capture tape ready.”

Danny touches Tokoyami’s shoulder.

* * *

It was two against three. As Danny said, the heroes were always going to be disadvantaged. Jirou’s not sure if that was applicable for their case.

She’s seen Danny and Tokoyami’s powers during the Quirk Apprehension Test. Danny had flight, super-strength, and some weird green energy quirk while Tokoyami had a powerful sentient shadow at his beck and call. Jirou has earphone jacks on her ears. It’s a little demoralizing but she understands that as a hero, she has to overcome that.

So far, Kaminari and Asui were the team’s heavy hitters. Jirou was going to rely on them to protect the bomb. She stuck her earphone jack in the wall.

“They’re downstairs. Not moving from the sound of it,” she told them.

Kaminari cracked his knuckles. He stands beside the bomb. Jirou knows that he has a powerful electrical quirk. Tsuyu is guarding the door.

“No sign of them yet,” she says.

Then, she doesn’t hear them anymore. No footsteps. It was like they disappeared.

Jirou doesn’t like the silence. It meant something bad was going to happen.

And then, Tokoyami and Fenton surfaced from the ground like a killer whale swimming up to eat its prey. Danny was holding Tokoyami by the shoulders. They were flying. Suddenly, Tokoyami swooped down, Talons reaching out towards Jirou. He didn’t give her any time to attach her jacks to her sound-amplifying device. Shadow talons surrounded Jirou, trapping her. By the time, she saw light, Tokoyami had tied her legs with capture tape.

“They’re inside!” she yelled, hoping that Asui would come.

Tsuyu entered. She lunged at Tokoyami.

* * *

Dark Shadow had been excited after finding out that he was going to work alongside Danny.

_This is your chance to give him a gift. An offering._

 _I’m not a crow!_ Tokoyami hissed telepathically.

After seeing Danny’s hero costume, Tokoyomi’s urge to perch on his shoulder and call him master expounded. His aura was downright godly. Tokoyami nearly bowed his head out of respect.

Form often shapes function. Raven’s in mythology were typically tricksters, omens of bad luck, and messengers. According to Norse Mythology, they perched on Odin’s shoulders and delivered the King of the Gods messages and prophecies. Danny is not Odin. But if the story fits…well.

Dark Shadow seemed to like Danny. He’s been giggling like a teenage girl seeing his idol the entire time. _Maybe he’ll let us perch on his shoulder if we ask nicely._

_Be quite. He may hear you._

Turns out there was more to Danny’s powers than just flight, strength, and energy. Danny’s hands were cold like ice water. Tokoyami stepped back, wanting that coldness to go away.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

Danny met Tokoyami’s beady eyes. “Don’t worry. This may tingle a little bit.”

Tokoyami felt an icy tingle in his stomach. It could have been indigestion but Danny suddenly grabbed his armpits, lifting him. “Don’t worry. This isn’t going to hurt,”

“wait..what are you…”

Danny flew straight at the ceiling. Tokoyami instinctively closed his eyes for the impact. It never came. When he opened his eyes, he saw the gray walls of the second floor, and then the third, and the fourth…

“You’re…going through the walls,” Tokoyami concluded.

“Yup. They won’t know what hit them,” Danny says, smiling.

_What was Danny Fenton’s quirk?_

 _He’s super cool isn’t he,_ said Dark Shadow

“Use the capture tape immediately. We are not going to let one of them escape.”

Tokoyami decided to prepare himself instead of worrying about the details of his teammate's quirk. They had passed the 5th floor and were about to go through the last ceiling.

* * *

Denki Kaminari was shaking. Jirou was captured. Asui was still fighting Tokoyami. That left Denki. He was going to fight Fenton. The flying overpowered menace was smirking right at him.

“Seize, villain!” Danny said pointing to Denki. The echo in his voice was not comforting. Denki stepped back, his arms clenched. “I’m giving you a chance to surrender.” Danny then threw his head back and laughed.

“Sorry, just getting into character. You know how it goes,” Danny said, chuckling.

Denki steadied himself and activated his quirk. It was up to him for their team to pass this class. Yellow sparks started rising from his body. And then, Danny charged, fists raised.

“Indiscriminate shock: **1.3 MILLION VOLTS**!” Kaminari yelled surrounding himself with electricity. It engulfed him. It made the air smell like burnt car batteries. Jirou’s hair starts to rise with the static.

A yellow bolt of lightning struck Danny. There was a scream. A scream so loud, and haunting. It reverberated the concrete walls of the room and shattered the windows. It continued. And continued. Jirou was holding her palms to her ears trying to get rid of the sound.

And then it was over. Danny slumped and landed on the tiles. Denki had used up all of his energy for that move. There was a consequence, yes. All of his braincells were basically fried. But that’s okay because so was Danny’s

Danny lifted his head. The eyes. Kaminari saw the eyes. There was something not right about those eyes. Green. Enveloping. It _menaced_.

Danny growled. He charged at Kaminari, who could do nothing about it. Danny lifted him by the collar, baring his fangs.

Kaminari saw black.

* * *

Tsuyu was just waiting outside the door when she heard Jirou scream. She entered the room. Lunged. Tsuyu then jumped backward just in time to avoid Tokoyami’s shadow talons swinging at her side. The fight started.

Tsuyu had good reflexes because of her quirk. She dodged when Tokoyami’s talons tried to grab her.

“It’s time to surrender,” He said in a low voice. _How the hell did they get here so quickly?_

And then, she heard a scream. It came from Danny. Kaminari had hit him with his electrical quirk. Danny remained suspended in the air as he screamed. Tsuyu couldn’t see his face because his back was towards her. But that scream. It even made Tokoyami pause. Asui and he were putting their palms to their ears trying to get rid of the sound. It wasn’t loud. Sure, it shattered all the windows but Asui had heard Present Mic scream during the first day of class just to get it over with. _That_ was loud. Danny’s scream was painful. It was the sound of someone dying. Tsuyu didn’t want to hear that boy scream ever again. _Just make it stop. Make it stop._

And then it did. Tsuyu had been too distracted. Tokoyami’s Dark Shadow had engulfed her in darkness. The last thing she saw was Danny’s hands on the bomb.

And then it was over. There was light again. Tokoyami’s quirk had slithered back to where…well, wherever it went. Tsuyu guessed it was probably inside Tokoyami’s bellybutton. There was a sound of the bell. All Might’s voice came from out of the speakers, hollering: “Team H: Hero Team WINS!”

Tsuyu was still conscious unlike Kaminari. Tokoyami had tied her hands up as well with the capture tape. He was now looming in front of her.

Danny strides over to Tokoyami, who looks over his shoulder to look at Danny. “Sorry about that. I don’t like being electrocuted.” Danny said testily, smoke rising from his costume. He doesn’t seem to mind. Or notice.

“What the hell was that?!” Jirou said indignantly. “You nearly broke my eardrums,” she added.

“That was really painful, _kero_ ,” Tsuyu agreed.

Danny blinked, tilting his head. He looked around the room. “What’s with all the broken glass,”

Tokoyami pointed a finger at Danny.

“Me?” Danny says, bewildered. “What did I do?”

“You screamed so loud it shattered the windows,” Jirou whimpered. “How is that even possible. I thought your quirk was flight. Are you a hybrid or something?”

Danny pointed a finger gun at Jirou. “Yeah. Let’s go with that,” he deadpanned. Danny crouched down and took away Jirou’s capture tape. Tokoyami did the same with Tsuyu’s.

“Is he going to be okay though?” Danny asked, pointing a thumb behind him. “I mean; He looks like _he_ was the one that got electrocuted.”

Tsuyu stood up after Tokoyami had removed the capture tape. She was slouching her shoulders as usual. Kaminari was worse for wear than Danny, who got hit with a voltage higher than a taser gun. By all means, Danny should not have gotten back up after that stunt.

“He did mention that if he uses his powers too much, his brain short-circuits for an hour,” Tsuyu said. She places a finger to her mouth. “Probably,” she added uncertainly.

Danny walked towards the Kaminari. He slung the blonde over his shoulder before the robot gurney arrived in the room.

“Why did you tie him up?” Tokoyami questions.

“He’s a villain. You have to tie them up otherwise they’ll escape. Wasn’t that part of the test?” Danny says. He places Kaminari gently on the gurney. The little robots transport him slowly out of the building.

“Um..no,” Jirou says, “Well, not necessarily, all you needed to do was get to the bomb before the time limit,”

Danny blinks multiple times before slapping his forehead. “Oh crap. I just thought…. well…I must not have heard All Might correctly. I thought for sure, we needed to capture you all.”

“It’s fine. If this were real, you would have saved everyone the trouble.” Tokoyami says helpfully. Tsuyu nods. Tokoyami and Danny were right. If this test had been real, it was important for the heroes to capture the villains quickly to prevent future problems. Danny was thinking ahead. Or he could have just forgotten All Might’s instructions and acted accordingly.

“You’re pretty amazing, _kero_ ,” Tsuyu says.

Danny blushed green.

* * *

All Might started furiously writing on his notebook young Fenton showed yet another quirk. He had been present during Danny Fenton’s practical exam and thus has concluded that this teen was leagues ahead of his peers. Power. Durability. Intuition. There were still some uncertainties about the boy but Aizawa and Tsukauchi had vouched for him. That’s all that matters apparently. All Might decide to rid himself of the thought of All for One and the boy side by side. It’s not a good image.

His students gathered into a hubbub as Fenton started flying through the walls along with Tokoyami. _He could extend that power to other people as well. How very convenient. That was perfect for rescue._ So far, there doesn’t seem to be any dire consequences with Fenton’s powers. He must have had years of training to get to that level.

The monitor showed Tokoyami wrapping some capture tape on Jirou’s legs. The left screen showed Danny Fenton, smirking. Below that was Kaminari’s quivering lip. Danny flew forwards. Kaminari activated his quirk.

The chattering voices in the monitor room were silence compared to Fenton’s scream. All Might was thankful that he was the only one who could hear that noise. It was not for his student’s ears to hear. That was the sound of someone dying. It was so loud that it’s decibels shattered the windows.

One of the monitors showed Fenton, slumped on the ground.

“Well, he’s not getting back up after that,” Momo says.

“And neither is Kaminari. Have you seen his face? He looks like a dumbass,” Mina chuckles.

And then Danny lifts his head. One of the monitors that showed his face suddenly flickered into a haze of purple and green. Like a glitch. All Might had to press some buttons on his phone to make sure that the monitor was working properly. That one monitor with Danny’s face went back to normal after a few seconds. It showed his back touching the bomb.

“Man, that was so creepy,” Hagakagure says. “It’s like a horror movie,”

“Forget about that,” said Rikido Sato. “How is Danny walking normally after that shock?”

_So he’s more durable in that form, I see._ All Might writes in his notebook. Kaminari had yelled 1.3. million volts. Either that was true, or Kaminari’s quirk needed some fine adjusting.

“Kaminari’s quirk must not be as powerful as he thinks it is,” Momo adds.

“Yeah, but…The windows. The glass shattered. Did Kaminari do that?” Uraraka says.

“Danny Fenton’s quirk is still pretty unclear,” Sero says.

“He’s obviously a hybrid like Todoroki,”

Todoroki doesn’t say anything. All Might looks over his side where young Bakugou stands. His mouth his open, fists clenched so hard that his knuckles turned white.

Finally, the students returned from the practice building. Kaminari was escorted to the nurse’s offices. All Might remembers in his file that the downside to his quirk was that it could short-circuit his brain. He’s probably okay though.

All Might congratulates the winners. “Well done, Hero Team. You overcome the odds and took down the Villain team in less than 5 minutes.” He turns to the remaining members of the Villain team; Asui and Jirou. “You responded well to the best of your abilities, young Asui, young Jirou. Take heart. The point of this lesson is to learn from your mistakes and grow from them.”

“We did not expect Fenton-san to literally go through the floor,” Jirou says gloomily.

“That was really manly though. Super cool!” Kirishima says loudly. “The way they just popped up out of nowhere and SLAM!”

“Hehe...Thanks,” Danny says bashfully.

“Tokoyami was really cool too.” Uraraka says, punching the air happily, “The way you just dived with those shadow talons on your back. I got goosebumps,”

“It was nothing,” Tokoyami says in a tiny voice.

“Well,” All Might start, he turns to his audience, hands on his hips. “The best player is obviously young Fenton.”

All Might sees Danny stagger. “Me?” Danny says loudly.

“Indeed! Young Fenton.”

Even Tokoyami nodded. Accepting the fact that Danny was the winner.

Danny chuckles weakly, “Haha…This is a first.” He said.

“Can anyone explain why?”

Young Iida was the first to raise his hand. Feeling the need to contribute something before Yaoyoruzu hogged all the questions. “Yes? Young Iida,”

“Danny had the element of surprise. He used his quirk wisely and even when he was electrocuted by Kaminari’s quirk, he didn’t stop. He kept on moving. He even tied up Kaminari despite the fact that he was already unconscious. The Hero Team was quick, efficient, and intuitive. They moved together like a team and caused minimal property damage.”

When Iida finished, All Might gave him a thumbs up. Danny’s face was completely blank. Like he wasn’t used to positive feedback.

“Correct, young Iida.” All Might said, he turned to Danny, “That was very Plus Ultra of you Young Fenton. You did not need to capture all your enemies in that battle but in a real scenario, you must ensure that your opponent is restrained otherwise they may lash back and cause more damage.”

All Might clapped his hands. “You guys did well.” He said to Asui and Jirou. “All Right! Time for the Next Battle.”

After that, All Might saw Danny surrounded by his peers. He doesn’t have much confidence. Danny tended to make himself smaller when given praise. It was something he needed work on. All Might catches a glimpse of Bakugou again. He’s looking down on the floor. _Ahh…pride and the feeling of being inferior._ It was a good thing that All Might did not mention Danny’s other powers to the rest of the class. Danny was obviously holding back. He could have frozen Kaminari on the spot instead of charging towards him, fist ready to pounce.

He looks at Danny again. The boy had green freckles on his upper cheeks. All Might smiles fondly. The boy was going to be a great hero in the future. Even though he gave All Might the heebie-jeebies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel that Danny is so used to capturing his enemies that he instinctively just does the same with the test. And Danny doesn’t have the best attention span. He heard Battle…Capture…Bomb and just assumed that they needed to get all the enemies before the time limit regardless if they get the bomb or not]
> 
> the next chapter will obviously be about the USJ arc. There will be some revelations. Dont expect too much about it. I think you guys probably already know some of them.


	10. Rescue Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's rescue training time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of fillery but enjoy.

The human mind is a fragile thing. If it keeps on thinking about things beyond its reach, then nothing will ever get done. Kaminari wakes from his one-hour recharge. He does not remember Danny’s eyes, his fangs, and the clicking noises that came out from his mouth. Recovery girl gives him some energy gummies. He looks at Midoriya who is still sleeping, his arm is wrapped in a cast.

“Poor kid,” Kaminari says, shaking his head. He approaches Midoriya and pats his head affectionately.

* * *

There will come a day when Bakugou Katsuki was going to lose. He just wasn’t expecting that that day will be today.

_On the second day of class, no less_.

He left the classroom hurriedly. His classmates tried to surround him the same way they did with Fenton but he called them _extras_ and went on his merry way. With his head down. Eyes glaring at the concrete like it had Deku’s face pasted on it.

_Damn that nerd!_ He thought. His mind pictured Deku’s face, lying on the gurney. The green-haired boy’s arms were broken. It was the face of a man who knew he had won the battle but lost the war.

Katsuki bit his lip until he tasted copper.

And then there was that American. His quirk…or quirks…Katsuki looked down on his pink palms and realized that if it hadn’t been Deku…if…He gulped as he felt his throat tighten. He would have lost as easily as that invisible girl and tail boy in the second battle with IcyHot. It would have been seconds. Katsuki couldn’t believe how that American just stood up from an electrical attack like it had been _nothing._ True, Kaminari was an idiot. But if Katsuki had been in his place, it wouldn’t have mattered because the fucking guy,

“…couldn’t be hit,” Katsuku whispered, horrified at the thought. The American could just go through things. He was strong. He could fly. Katsuki’s quirk wouldn’t even matter to him.

Katsuki stuffed both of his hands in his pockets. He was nearly out of school until an annoying voice had called his name.

“Kachaan!”

Katsuki made a noise in the back of his throat that was halfway to a growl and a sob. Deku had said something so stupid that Katsuki’s turned around just to see the expression on Deku’s face. _Getting a quirk from someone else. Ridiculous._ And then Deku had the nerve to make some soppy speech about not knowing how to use his quirk, making up more excuses. Not telling Katsuki the truth. _Pitying him_.

“What the hell!” Katsuki snapped, “I lost to you today! And if that weren’t enough…” His eyes felt hot. “That Icy bastard…that American glowstick…There’s no way I could measure up to them. DAMMIT!” The ponytail girl was right.

“Dammit! DAMmit…DAMMIT!” Katsuki yelled, tears already falling down his cheeks. He looked up, forcing himself to look at Deku pitying him. “This is _my_ start you hear me! From now on…This is _Bakugou Katsuki’s_ beginning. Enjoy your victory, you won’t have it for very long,”

Katsuki snarled. He wiped his tears. Turned and walked away from Deku.

_That American…Icy Hot…I’ll show them. I will beat them._

Danny can’t help but look at the window. There’s some drama going on between Midoriya and Bakugou. In an ideal world, he’d be holding a bag of popcorn. It looked emotional. They were crying and everything. All Might arrives and…probably causes more problems.

Danny can’t help but sigh. He looks at his phone contact list. Everyone was just so _eager_ to share their contact info with him. Mina was the first to give, and it had a domino effect on the whole class. Well nearly, the whole class. Midoriya was still at the infirmary. Todoroki didn’t care. Bakugou was for some reason glaring at him like his existence was an insult to the laws governing the universe (which if you think about it is not entirely untrue) But other than that, 18 people have his contact information now. His previous phone had like six people on the contact list. One of them was Vlad’s because how else was he going to know who was threatening him at 2:00 in the morning. 

And then this is where Danny realized something. It has happened to him several times in the past and he’s decided that he, frankly, has had enough of it.

_Am I…popular?_

Danny had been hit by a flying RV before but this feeling was worse.

“Well, that’s not going to last long,” he says to himself. He’s been popular in Casper High a few times. It was temporary and oftentimes, it caused more problems in the long run.

There was a pinging noise. A text had arrived.

* * *

Living with Aizawa had been awkward at first but Danny eventually got used to it. The man didn’t talk much…he didn’t really do much. Aizawa didn’t even go on patrols anymore since school had started.

Aizawa didn’t work at home. He always preferred it at his office so Danny usually had the apartment to himself until eight or nine. When Aizawa had arrived after his second day of school, Danny already knew that he had done something wrong. The man was glaring at him again.

“What?” Danny says from the black sofa. The older man finally bought some stuff that should be inside a living room, like a sofa and a good coffee table because he decided that it was weird for a well-functioning man in his 30’s with two jobs to not have basic living furniture. Yup. It totally did not have anything to do with the caseworker assigned to Danny, who gave Aizawa a nasty stink-eye and threatened to take away his teaching license if he didn’t buy a sofa. That was just a nasty coincidence.

Aizawa didn’t talk until he got inside his yellow sleeping bag. “I saw your test results, and the footage.”

“What about it?” Danny had done well according to All Might. What exactly was the problem here? Was it because of the windows?

Aizawa closed his eyes. “You were holding back.”

Danny cocks an eyebrow. He presses the off button on his smartphone. Danny had been looking at the latest space news to keep with the times. They were finally going to be mining some helium-3 after twenty years of testing.

“Of course I was holding back. I didn’t want to hurt any of them. Ecto-blasts are painful the first time you get hit,” Danny reasoned. He’s aware of how powerful his ecto-blasts had gotten and knows that if he’s not careful, he’s going to end up blasting through someone’s internal organs.

Aizawa seems to consider this for a moment. Then he said: “Sometimes in the field kid, you have to take risks. Speed will triumph Power every time. You could have avoided getting shocked. Why the hell didn’t you turn intangible?”

Hearing this, Danny felt his cheeks heat up from embarrassment. “Sorry. I underestimated Kaminari.” He said because Danny was pretty sure Aizawa was going to give him remedial lessons if he had said: ‘ _I just sort of…forgot.’_

Aizawa seemed to believe this lie. Well…not technically a lie. In the heat of the moment, Danny tends to forget some of his basic abilities because, in the long run, nothing beats a good old punch in the face.

There was that pinging noise again. It was his phone.

“Aren’t you going to get that?” Aizawa says sleepily.

Danny glances at his phone. His classmates had started a group chat. They were mostly talking nonsense. The typical stuff that he used to do with Sam and Tucker. Video games…the latest songs…cute girls…complaining about homework.

“It’s nothing,” Danny says, standing upright. “Just some of my classmates. Mina started a group chat.” Danny pressed the little button on the right side of his phone, shutting it down for the night.

Aizawa narrowed his eyes at him but did not say anything.

“I should do my homework. There’s still some history I have to catch up on,” Danny says. He walks to Aizawa’s room, which was technically his room now. The older man finally bought some stuff that should be inside a bedroom, like a mattress and clean sheets. Danny laid stomach down on his bed and distracted himself with schoolwork.

* * *

Danny sees a crowd of news reporters in front of the U.A. gates. He goes, “Nope. I’m not dealing with that today,” and turns invisible.

People don’t often notice things because if people went around noticing things all the time, nothing will ever get done. You don’t notice a dewdrop sliding off the forty-second leaf in a tree, or the ants crawling into their anthills. That’s a job for biologists.

The average student in the morning, however, does not notice other students walking in the hallways.

Danny safely turns visible without people hounding him how he did it.

He walks to the classroom and is greeted by his classmates again. Danny gives a half-hearted smile and wave and sits at his desk at the back.

Aizawa arrives and starts to give them feedback. “Good job on your battle training yesterday. I looked at the video clips and your scores” he starts. “Bakugou, grow up…Midoriya learn to control your quirk,”

“Now on to homeroom business.”

Danny feels tension in the atmosphere. Everyone is expecting something amazing to come out of Aizawa’s mouth.

Then he said: “You’ll pick a class president,”

And then the room erupts into chaos.

“I wanna be president!”

“No. Me!”

“I’d like to do it,” 

“The position was made for me,”

“I wanna be the leader,”

Danny doesn’t understand why his classmates are so eager to become class president. It was extra work. _Count me out._

They were going to decide by vote. Danny looks at his white strip of paper and writes the name Iida Tenya in English. He erases it and replaces the letters with kanji. Smiling, Danny places his vote inside the box. He thinks Iida would like to be class president. He has the look and all.

It was lunchtime. Danny buys it using the money Aizawa gave him, that Aizawa got from his caseworker from the _Embassy_. He is invited to sit with Mina, Tsuyu, Jiro and Tokoyami.

“Heya~Dannio,” Mina says without thinking.

Danny doesn’t like the name. Only his father called him that.

“It’s just Danny,” said Danny.

“Okay—Danny—hey what did you think of the latest hero team-up between Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods. I smell a love story in the works,” Mina said, squealing the last part.

“I think they’re just friends, _kero,”_ said Tsuyu before she sipped her miso soup.” Mina-chan is very invested in the relationships with pro-heroes,” she adds helpfully.

Danny took a bite of his burger steak. “I don’t follow hero gossip all that much,” he says quietly.

“What type of music do you like?” Tokoyami asks.

“Rock n Roll mostly,” Danny replied. “I prefer old music. Like… 21st-century music,” Danny adds quickly before anyone asks him about any modern bands.

“Strange. You don’t seem the type,” Tsuyu says,

Danny shrugs, taking another bite of his steak. “I have the soul of a 216-year-old man,” he says enigmatically.

“How long have you been in Japan anyway?” Mina can’t seem to stop asking questions. She was a typical extrovert. If this goes on, they were going to ask them even more personal questions. Especially the ones regarding his family. No one needs to know about that.

Danny lies: “A year.”

“Your Japanese is very good. So natural!” Mina chimes.

Danny chuckles weakly. “I’m a fast learner….” He says uncertainly. To this day, he still hasn’t figured out why that is.

The bell starts ringing for about ten seconds. This was not normal. Danny bolts upright. He looks around apprehensively. Surveying every inch of the room. No ghost. No specters. Not one Spook.

”What’s going on?” demanded Danny. The older student sitting next to him explains that someone had broken into the campus. They need to run to the roof. Quickly.

Mina, Tsuyu, and Tokoyami started to run towards the door. Danny was already used to chaos. It was probably not a ghost but his instincts were screaming at him to go ghost and check it out. He ducked under the table and transformed. He didn’t need to worry about people seeing him. It was human nature to ignore things when panic strikes.

Danny turned invisible and flew up the ceiling, passing through it like it didn’t exist. He was outside. His eyes scanned his surroundings. He sees a stampede of press reporters and Aizawa trying to stop them from getting in the campus.

“Something’s not right,” he says to himself.

There was that icy tingle in his spine that always happened whenever there was a ghost around. But his ghost sense didn’t activate. He flew around the school twice for good measure but did not see anything.

“False alarm?” Danny said to himself. He scratched his head. Shrugging, Danny flies to the cafeteria’s bathroom and detransformed.

The panic died down, and everyone was slowly walking back to their seats, finishing their lunches. An embarrassing noise filled the room; relieved sighs, people muttering that they weren’t scared at _all,_ loud complaints about how this one person tripped them over on purpose, and _hey aren’t you going to apologize!,_ nervous coughs, and cutlery clicking on the metal bowls.

Danny sighed heavily, unconsciously using his ice powers in the form of an icy fog. His core feels heavy. This was the longest he's gone to not seeing a specter. It’s been what…. nearly a month? He kind of misses the little buggers, they were annoying, sure, but Danny would give anything just to see a familiar face again. Even if that face had a bazooka pointed at him.

He shakes his head and returns to his seat.

Empires…Dynasties…Eras…Rollercoasters—what comes up must come down—Eventually. The reinforced titanium walls of U.A. crumbled like magnetic sand.

“Did some villain managed to slip in?”

Nezu focuses his beady little eyes on what remains of their security. He keeps his mouth neutral, paws behind his back. His mind goes to the expired warranty on the security system first and then thinks about what could happen next.

Confidently, he says: “Someone wants War.”

* * *

“…Rescue training,”

Danny’s gaze shifts towards Aizawa as he says the word.

“…Preparing you for disaster, relief, from fire to floods,”

Oh. Danny’s eyes misted over as boredom struck. _That kind of thing_. He leaned further back into his desk seat and sighed. He was already used to that kind of thing by now. Amity Park had drills every single month because of all the ghost attacks, especially after Vortex and Undergrowth (two Ancient Ghosts with powers related to uncontrollable forces of nature).

Mr. and Dr. Fenton were usually the ones in charge of those drills. In fact, it served as the typical family bonding time for the Fenton’s. They had plans for every sort of emergency: fire, flood, earthquakes, nuclear catastrophes, nuclear war, wide-scale ghost attacks (especially that), tornados, tornadoes with ghost sharks*, alien invasions and so on and so forth. It’s exactly what you’d expect from a family with a literal portal to another dimension in their basement.

Danny sat at the very back of the bus, mind wandering as his classmates were socializing. The seats were way comfortable than the buses they had in Casper High, and they were air-conditioned too. So Danny was relaxing in his seat until they arrived at their destination. His eyes were becoming heavy, and as a result, Danny allowed himself to take a short nap. Ochako Uraraka had asked him beforehand why he wasn’t wearing his costume.

“I’ll change when I get there. It’s part of my quirk,” he said quickly before entering the bus and claiming the window seat at the very back as his own.

It was a smooth ride.

The bus stopped. Danny felt someone shaking his shoulder. It was Tokoyami. The raven-headed boy with a sentient shadow attached to his bellybutton. “M’wake,” Danny murmured.

“We’re here,” said Tokoyami before standing up, walking towards the door. Danny rubbed his eyes.

The Unforseen Simulation Joint or USJ—a sight to behold. Landslides, flood zones, conflagration zones, and forest fire zones designed by the Space Hero: 13, themselves. Thirteen was named after the famous Apollo space program—Apollo 13.

“Astro…naut…” Danny gaped in awe at Thirteen. He’s never seen one up close especially not one wearing their very own spacesuit. Danny clenched his knuckles in excitement. They probably weren’t an _actual_ Astronaut but it’s the costume that counts.

“As many of you are aware,” said Thirteen in a voice one expects from someone wearing a spacesuit—Grainy and slightly filled with static. Danny loved it. He used to talk like that when he was eight imagining himself up in the moon, wearing his very own spacesuit, and talking to Houston. “My quirk is called, **Black Hole** ,”

“Awesome,” Danny breathed.

“However, my power can easily kill,” said Thirteen, suddenly becoming very serious as it should be. Danny unclenched his fists, relaxing his shoulders, as the tone of the speech changed. “I do not doubt that there are some among you with similar abilities. Don’t forget that it only takes one wrong move with an uncontrollable quirk for people to die,”

“This class will show you a new perspective! You will learn how to utilize your quirks to save lives.” Thirteen continued. “You’re powers are there not to cause harm but to help people. It’s what a hero is all about,” Thirteen finished with a bow.

Danny smiles and claps enthusiastically. He’ll listen to anyone wearing a spacesuit.

Aizawa starts, “Great. First off…”

In another timeline, Aizawa finished that sentence, whatever it is, but it was bound to be significant. In another timeline, Shigaraki arrived twenty minutes late because of a pack of expired convenience store sushi. Possibly, Toshinori Yagi aka All Might, decided that taking a cab to work was quicker and all the more responsible on his part. He arrived just in time to save the day.

This is not that timeline.

Danny’s ghost sense goes off. It’s small. Like a baby burp. The lights start to dim. Danny steadies himself and grabs his thermos. Aizawa does not finish his sentence and instead, looks over his shoulder. There’s a swirling mass of dark purple fog just a few feet from the USJ fountain. It spreads, elongating, widening. Aizawa sees a pair of slanted yellow eyes. A pale hand appears through the fog.

“Stay in one group!” Aizawa commands. “No.13 protect the students!”

“What is that?” inquires Kirishima. Everyone squints their eyes seizing up the sight below them. A group of people walks out of the fog. People in all shapes and sizes. Humanoid to slightly less humanoid. People with knives for hands and people with hands holding knives. Danny doesn’t recognize them. He does not care for them. What he’s looking at is the dark purple wall that they are coming out of.

_A ghost?_

Aizawa’s hair and scarf rises. Danny transforms not caring whether he’s seen by his classmates anymore. It hardly mattered anyway. Everyone was too focused on the sight before them. Danny senses fear, sweat, and teenage hormones all dialed up to 420 percent. He narrows his eyes at the black fog with yellow eyes a few meters away. There is something not right about him.

Danny starts to fly towards the villains.

“Fenton!” Aizawa yells. This startles Danny and he hovers in midair. “Stay where you are!”

“But…” Danny tried to protest.

“I said _stay!_ ” said Aizawa with such ferocity in his voice that Danny drops down to the ground in obedience like a well-trained superhero. Aizawa turns to Thirteen. “Evacuate the students. Kaminari, use your quirk to make the call.”

“But sensei, you can’t just fight them alone,”

“Yeah, I’m with Midoriya with this one,” Danny says. Aizawa needed all the help he could get. Plus, Danny needed to talk to the ghost. Perhaps he could show him a way into the ghost zone.

“Don’t worry. I have a couple of tricks in my sleeve,” Aizawa said in a low and gruff voice. “Take care of them, Thirteen. Fenton if you so much as help me, I will make sure you’re expelled.” And with that, Eraserhead leaped into action.

An adult not letting Danny do his job? Not letting Danny shoulder all the responsibility? Unheard of and yet Danny’s jaw is wide. He shakes his head and finally allows Aizawa to take care of it. There are some adults out there that could surprise you after all. Their priority should be an escape. They start to run. Danny looks back one last time at the ghost and frowns. There’s something not right about him.

Danny does not overtake his classmates, choosing to guard their backs in case of a surprise attack.

And surprise, the black fog appears right in front of the group. 

_Warping powers. Crap, I’ve got to learn how to do that._

“Nice to meet you all,” It greets them in a polite manner which makes Danny rethink its status as a ghost. Danny allows it to say his evil monologue in the spirit of the thing. “We are the Villain League. We have humbly let ourselves into U.A. High School to have All Might, the Symbol of Peace take his last breath,” He’s very well-mannered. Precise. Gets to the point. No threats about important organs being up for display on anyone’s wall. No ghostly moans about the nature of cardboard boxes or sweetly aggressive offers for cookies and mincemeat, Danny’s never met an evil ghost that was as well-mannered as that.

“I heard All Might was supposed to be here, but is there a change?”

“Somethings not right,” Danny says out loud. The villain was a ghost…but also _no_ t? Well, it was certainly dead, Danny was sure about that. His ghost sense _did_ activate in his presence but it wasn’t like the ones he got from Amity with all the rude and chaotic ghosts. This was incomplete.

There is still a lot to be said about the existence of half-ghosts or halfas. There used to be two. The last remaining one is hovering a few feet from the ground trying to figure out what the black fog villain is. What is a halfa? Well, it can be said that a halfa is an entity that is both a ghost and a human. Both mortal and ethereal.A being that can walk in the realm of the living and the dead. Spectra—a beautiful soul-sucking ghost of a guidance counselor—once stated “a creepy little creature with creepy little powers,” and then there was Skulker who didn’t really care about its definition and focused entirely on its rarity. If Dr. Madeline Fenton had found out about a halfa’s existence she would have speculated that a _halfa is a human with ectoplasm bounded to its soul allowing it to shift into an ectoplasmic being of post-human consciousness, e.g. a ghost._ Danny always thought that his soul had merged with his body. All of these statements are correct.

Although the subject of a halfa’s birth is quite specific and known to perhaps only two Not-People in the multiverse. According to Clockwork, there are three criteria in the creation of a true halfa:

  1. Exposure and Immunity to ectoplasm,
  2. an accidental traumatic death,
  3. and lastly, was meant to die but didn’t.



Kurogiri is not a halfa. Let’s leave it at that. It’s the difference between a coin and someone biting a coin in half.

Danny thought about the thermos. Yes, the good old Fenton Thermos. It would be easy. But then he shook his head deciding to leave that for later. He didn’t want to be bombarded with a dozen questions afterward. Danny was about to fire an ecto-beam when Kirishima and Bakugou decided to ruin it for him. They lunged, fully expecting to blow the villain to bits. Smoke filled their vision. Kurogiri’s baritone voice reached their ears.

“Oh dear, oh dear,” he said, “Such gifted students. The reason I came here is to scatter you and beat you to death.”

“Little too late for that, buddy,” said Danny, firing an ectoblast straight at Kurogiri’s non-existent body. It hit him, opening a smoking hole where his abdomen probably should be. For a split second, Kurogiri’s eyes flashed green and then it settled back to a bright yellow.

“How?” Kurogiri said, bewildered. “That…hurt!”.

“There’s more where that came from!” yelled Danny, and then he charged, fist blazing green.

Panicked, Kurogiri quickly spread his quirk until all that could be seen was a dark violet wall of Kurogiri. This did not stop Danny. He punched the villain in the solar plexus. Or probably where he thought was the solar plexus. Kurogiri scattered himself to…well everywhere really. Inky masses of Kurogiri littered the air.

“Too late,” said a hoarse disembodied voice around them. Masses of black solid shadows were trying to form themselves back into their original form.

Danny looked around. Iida and a couple of his classmates were on the ground cowering. They’ve never faced a villain before so it was a rather sensible reaction in Danny’s opinion.

“ _Fenton_!” Thirteen shouted. “What did Aizawa tell you,”

“I’m not _helping_ Aizawa,” Danny retorted.

“Why yes…but you need to let the Pros handles this,”

“Where did you send them?!” Danny demanded.

“They’re here. Scattered,” said the boy with multiple arms, eyes, and ears protruding from his body.

“Fenton,” Thirteen called again, this time more calmly. “You can fly, right? So help us by flying to the school and tell them about our situation.”

Danny turned around to face Thirteen. “But…I can’t just leave you guys to fend for yourselves,” he protested. The villain was still forming and Danny was the only one capable of landing a hit on him. He also had a couple of questions for the villain and what better way to do that than by fighting.

“I’ve seen you fight. I’ve seen your powers,” said Thirteen, “It’ll be faster if you fly back to the school and tell everyone.”

Danny looks at his classmate's faces. He’s seen that expression in Sam and Tuckers. Determined whatever the cost, and yet scared out of their mind. Thirteen was right. He needs to trust his classmates more, and like Aizawa told him Speed Triumps over Power. Danny trusts that they’ll survive before help comes. Him doing everything by himself was going to cause more problems and worse, spark some questions.

“Please use your power to save us,” said Thirteen at last.

Danny salutes.

“Planning in front of your enemies. How foolish,” Kurogiri says condescendingly.

Danny smirks. “It’ll hardly matter,” he says flying higher where Kurogiri can’t reach him and then disappearing into thin air.

“He’s gone!” Iida exclaims.

Thirteen shouts out their quirk, “BLACK HOLE!” and suddenly tendrils of black fog get sucked into the space hero’s finger

“We are counting on you, Danny!” Mina shouts. Danny flies through the roof, zooming towards the school as fast as he could.

The Unforeseen Simulation Joint was a five-minute ride from the main U.A. building. Danny flew there in less than a minute out of sheer desperation. Twenty seconds later, the teachers gathered. A second after that All Might appeared, and then rushed towards the door and bounded.

It took exactly ten seconds for that to happen.

All Might arrived majestically in front of the large doors of the USJ shouting the three words everyone wanted to hear.

“I. AM. HERE!”

The Warp Gate, Kurogiri managed to injure the Space Hero, Thirteen, and when he found out that the strange glowing student had disappeared out of thin air, he knew that it was time for a tactical retreat before the faculty arrived.

“One of the students escaped to get some help,” Kurogiri told his teal haired 20 something-year-old ward. There was a hand blocking his view and Kurogiri had always wondered how he was able to see with that thing on.

“If you weren’t the warp gate,” Shigaraki snarled, scratching his neck until they bled, “I would have crumbled you to dust.”

It was an empty threat, Kurogiri knew because Shigaraki’s quirk only ever worked on things he could touch. And so, the door blasted open like a cannonball, and in the doorway stood All Might in all of his muscled glory.

This is what could be said about what happened in the Unforeseen Simulation Joint before Danny Fenton advisably turned invisible, phased through the dome, and flew at more than 240 meters an hour in a school zone that had a bus limit of fifty miles an hour.

The scattered students are still fighting for their lives with great success. Midoriya, Tsuyu, and Mineta managed to escape the shipwreck zone with no broken limbs (if you don’t count Midoriya’s broken finger), and they trudged towards the fountain where Aizawa was being attacked by a black monster.

And a few seconds later, All Might arrived, defeating five thugs in less than a second.

“We’re saved!” Mineta cried from the bushes, snot dripping down his nose.

The expression on All Might’s face was not nice. He scowled and with such speed and precision, grabbed Midoriya, Tsuyu, Mineta, and Aizawa delivering them to safety. Midoriya didn’t even have time to exhale before it all happened.

Aizawa was injured. His elbow showing the muscle underneath his skin and his forehead was still bleeding. Midoriya clutched Aizawa’s waist, supporting his weight. He could smell copper in the air. All Might prepared for a fight.

“Give up, now,” said All Might darkly, “Backup will be arriving shortly.”

The villain, who still hadn’t introduced his name to the audience, but one that we all know is Shigaraki Tomura, laughed. It was a laugh that would have sent him to a room with cushioned walls wearing a white straightjacket.

“The boss is here,” he chuckled, “Well, we didn’t come empty-handed. See here. This,” he gestured towards the black creature with his brain sticking out of its head, “Is the one who will kill you, All Might.”

In another timeline, the creature called a Nomu—an abomination with multiple quirks made by an even worse abomination with multiple quirks—would have fought All Might in a battle between unstoppable force vs immovable object and would have likely lost, and sent flying out of the dome. This is not that timeline because the major difference that this timeline provides is you didn’t have to wait for three more chapters before Shigaraki Tomura is shot in the hand with a bullet.

They are here. Ectoplasm, Midnight, Cementos, Power Loader, Present Mic, Vlad King, and several other pro-hero faculty teachers arrived just in time all because Danny Phantom had carried a bus full of teachers to USJ.

“Came as fast as we could,” Danny announced.

“So quickly!?” Sero cried.

“Ah…they’re here. It’s game over,” said Shigaraki, “Guess we got to try again next time, Kurogiri.” BANG.BANG.BANG. And then he was shot again in various places of his body. Kurogiri enveloped his ward,

“Not so fast!” All Might shouted, speeding up with the little energy he had to capture the villain but then, the black creature blocked his view, punching him in the stomach. All Might, thrown backwards, skidding to the ground so hard that a cloud of dust began obstructing his view.

“Nomu, Kill him,” Shigaraki said his last words and then he was surrounded by a swirling mass of dark fog disappearing into nothing.

And then the fight started.

It ended promptly a minute later.

Without the help of Shigaraki and Kurogiri, the Nomu was defeated not easily but quite a whole deal faster. Snipe had shot it in the eyes and Midnight’s somnambulist quirk made it go nighty-night.

Danny watched the aftermath. No one had been seriously injured apart from Thirteen and Aizawa. _Aizawa?!_

“Will he be okay?!” demanded Danny. All Might had the man in his arms, bridal style. His guardian’s forehead was bleeding. Danny felt an overwhelming sense of anger. All Might noticed how the green in his eyes had a different, much nastier shade to it.

“He will,” All Might said, reassuring the boy. “Recovery Girl will fix him like he was never even injured.”

“If I…”

All Might didn’t let him finish even though that was exactly the sort of thing he was thinking right now. The self-sacrificing trait starts with the words _‘If I….’_ _If I just took a damn cab to work…. If I woke up early…If I wasn’t so weak…. If I,_ and so on and so forth.

“This is not your responsibility to bear, young Fenton,” All Might said mildly. “What did Aizawa tell you?”

Danny pursed his lips into a straight line. He stared at Aizawa.

“He told me not to help him. I could have helped him.”

All Might nodded. “And if you did help him, you wouldn’t have the chance to fly to U.A. and get help.” he said.

“You’re right,” Danny said, at last, shoulders slumping.

* * *

In the dimly lit room of a bar underneath a karaoke booth, laid the bleeding body of Shigaraki Tomura.

“Report,” said the voice coming from a small television on a table. There wasn’t anything special about the voice. It was by all means normal. It was professional, calm, and gave the impression that the owner was sitting in a dark, probably million dollar apartment, the one that had large glass windows and little to no furniture because only rich people could afford to look like they had no furniture. 

“You lied….” Shigaraki said hoarsely, “All Might…is not weak…at all,”

“We left the Nomu to escape,” Kurogiri reported.

“Shame,” the voice said casually. “We could always make another one,”

“Kurogiri let one of them escape!” Shigaraki growled, placing the blame on the nanny instead.

The television had the words SOUND ONLY in violet neon letters on the screen but someone still managed to turn its head around eyes squinting at Kurogiri.

“Oh…” The voice trailed off, “Is that so.”

Kurogiri wanted to make himself smaller if it was possible. He decided to take a page from Tomura’s book and blame someone else, “The boy that escape,” the image of the white-haired teenager with glowing green eyes appeared in his mind. There was something very _Important_ about him but he couldn’t put his finger on it. “His quirk managed to hit me,” The green blast had been painful, not deadly though, it hardly would have mattered at this point, but it was painful in a way that Kurogiri wanted more only to feel that sudden rush of freedom in his system.

Kurogiri knew that his master had a fixation for rare quirks and thus, the voice gave the impression of standing straighter in his leather chair. “Oh?” He said curiously. “How interesting,” and then it went back to boredom. “Well you win some you lose some I suppose,”

“There was a boy…he moved like All Might,” Shigaraki rasped, “If it weren’t for him…If he wasn’t…I’ll get my hands on him next time,” he banged his fists on the ground petulantly.

There was a pause as the voice from the tv as if it was contemplating something.

“Hmmm…another interesting tidbit.”

Some couple of miles away, the owner of the voice sat on his leather chair, smirking after having realized that his archenemy had finally chosen a successor.

Danny felt himself breath again as he transformed back to Danny Fenton right in front of his classmates. The reactions he got from them was expected.

“Woah! Fenton, I didn’t know you could do that,”

“That was amazing,”

“So cool!”

Midoriya’s jaw nearly dropped to the floor seeing Danny transform back into a regular teenager with black hair and blue eyes. His mind was doing cartwheels, and the questions began piling up like flashcards, but it was a long day, and Danny’s eyes had a distant, dull look to them, no longer taking the once vibrant blue that Midoriya always thought was rather impossible. It stood out and looked more solid than the other eyes he’s seen, they stood out from the rest of his face. Midoriya would have to ask him about it later.

Danny smiled awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck with his right hand.

“I know you said that it was part of your quirk but seriously I’ve never seen a quirk quite like it,” Uraraka gushed.

“Instant costume change, so manly,” Kirishima added.

“No wonder we never see you in the locker rooms,” said Tokoyami.

“All right, all right. Gather up. Is everyone here?” said Tsukauchi as he counted the students with his finger. His lips parted, mouthing out the words, Ichi, ni, san…

“Good. Everyone’s here.”

“Sir, can we get an update from Aizawa?” Danny asked.

Tsukauchi gave him a reassuring smile and held up his phone. “Here…” the voice on the other end was talking about how Aizawa was going to be fine however some of his orbital floor bones were broken from the fight which could affect the use of his quirk in the future.

Danny inwardly sighed. That was some good news. At least no one was dead. That would be terrible and given his luck probably awkward if they ever turn out as a ghost.

“How about No. 13,” Mina asked in worried tones.

“They’re treated,” Tsukauchi replied keeping a neutral tone, “They’ll survive,”

Everyone collectively sighed. Tsukauchi eventually told them to return to the classroom, and they boarded the bus without any complaints. There wasn’t much talk while they ride towards the school. With the adrenaline out of their systems, some drifted into unconsciousness, and one particular student started reflecting as he watched the road shift into a concrete blur.

The day after tomorrow, the General Studies Department found themselves a new classmate of Mineta Minoru.

* * *

Yamada Hizashi had taken upon himself to babysit Danny Fenton while his best friend was still recuperating at the hospital. The events of the afternoon were still fresh and Yamada still could not believe how much power was contained in such a small package. He peered at Danny as the teenager was sloppily eating his take out noodles, which was exactly the state of Fenton’s skinny arms, and yet the boy managed to carry a busload of people towards USJ in under two minutes while flying. That kind of strength was reserved from someone like All Might.

“Hey, little lil’listener. How’s the food!” Yamada started the conversation. The kid’s slouch was bound to break his spine. Danny was staring at his noodles like they told him that his father had prostate cancer with only three months to live. Yamada decided to lighten the mood.

“It’s fine,” Danny said in a monotone voice.

“Aizawa is going to be _fine_ ,” said Yamada in a reassuring tone. “I’ve known him since high school and I could confidently say that Shota is too stubborn to die. He’ll probably attend school while still in bandages, knowing him,”

Danny’s lips quirked upwards for a second and then it was gone. He continued to slurp his noodles. “Tell, you what, we can go and visit tomorrow,”

At this Danny’s face brightened. Yamada swore his eyes glinting green for just a millisecond but then thought that it must have been the fluorescents

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the comments guys. they are my bread and butter. The next chapter will be about the sports festival arc. TBH it'll be a while until I post it because writing the sports festival arc is going to be a little tricky for me but I will do my best.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. I know that Reality Trip happened during the Summer, but for the sake of the story, it happened during Spring Break.  
> 2\. Danny got his ice powers early. I won’t specify a timeline.  
> 3\. Clockwork is a neutral entity. He only cares what’s good for the timeline. A clockmaker doesn’t get involve in the affairs of mankind but make sure that everyone’s affairs are on time, indeed.  
> 4\. The Quirk Expansion did not happen right away. The glowing baby was just the first visible quirk that appeared. Remember that quirks normally show up at four. 
> 
> Saw a fic in tumblr about Danny destroying the Reality gauntlet and decided to add that to the story. By the way here is the ficlet, check it out. https://noctilucid.tumblr.com/post/618483826579144704/dannymay-day-7-second-chance


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